A Memory Lost, A Love Found
by Guineapiglover
Summary: After an accident, Quatre has lost his memory and now clings tightly to Wufei while his lover Trowa watches, heartbroken in the background, and another pines for Trowa...4x5, 5x4
1. Chapter 1

I'd like to say here that this is NOT MY FIC. I DID NOT WRITE THIS. This is the work of a writer I betaed, however, she had to pull her writing from the internet after a close call in which her various boyxboy writings were nearly discovered by her homophobic family. I cannot mention her name because she said I couldn't, however, I assure you I have her full permission to post this for her fans. I will try to get them all up as soon as possible.

Also, in a later chapter, I have edited it some because of a major plot hole that she overlooked.

* * *

**A Memory Lost, A Love Found**

"Ha! Take that, losers!" Duo yelled as he slashed at a mobile doll.

Quatre found himself smiling even as he cut another mobile doll in half with his shota blades. Duo's ever-present cheer – even when in battle – was, as always, infectious. Quatre turned his attention back to the battle and quickly sliced at another mobile doll as it attempted to creep up behind him. He had just finished taking out two more dolls when he suddenly found his – Sandrock's – arm gripped in a tight hold.

"Allah!" He cried in surprise, struggling to cut the doll and free himself, but the doll was in an awkward position relative to his Gundam, making it impossible for Quatre to do anything except struggle futilely. The surrounding dolls, seeing their advantage, swarmed on him, grabbing at Sandrock's arms and legs and holding him immobile.

"Quatre?!" He heard Duo cry out a bit frantically.

Before Quatre could answer with a call for help, his cockpit door was ripped off, and he found himself scooped out and held in the hand of a mobile doll. Quatre barely had time to think //Uh oh, this doesn't look good!// before the doll began to speak, its voice booming through the loudspeakers drowning out his thoughts.

"Look at what I've got!" the doll's pilot triumphantly mocked before he began to squeeze the life out of Quatre.

As the pain from the overwhelming pressure engulfed Quatre's body, he threw back his head and screamed and screamed and screamed.

"Quatre!" He heard someone yell, but he could no more reply than he could stop screaming. At that moment, pain was all that he knew.

As the metal hand steadily tightened its sadistic grip around his body, unwanted memories of a time long gone began to resurface. They were suppressed memories of a younger self trapped in a dark room without food and water. Repressed but still shockingly visceral scenes of him being whipped every day and his tearful pleas for help flashed briefly through his mind, amplifying the pain he was already feeling at the present moment in a kind of horrific psychical backlash.

"No!" He shouted almost hysterically even as his eyes squeezed shut tightly in pained denial. "I won't remember! I won't!" His cries were loud, but they were swallowed up by the even louder sounds of the battle raging around him.

As quickly as they'd come, the memories were gone again, forced back by Quatre's determination. He would not remember those times long past, he wouldn't!

Just when Quatre began to feel his ribs creaking, the pressure surrounding him increasing to the point that his ribs were about to snap like toothpicks, a clawed hand shot through the chest of the doll holding Quatre and flames spewed forth.

"Let go of him!" Wufei roared angrily as he ripped the head off the mobile doll.

The pilot seeing his imminent demise gave a mad laugh, "With pleasure!" and then he – the doll – pulled back its hand and tossed Quatre hard through the air.

Before Wufei could even react, Quatre was flying through the air. When Quatre finally landed, his body bounced on the grass like a ragged puppet whose strings had been abruptly cut. His tumble only stopped when he hit his head with a loud 'crack' against a rocky outcropping.

"No!" Wufei cried, horrified, completely destroying the mobile doll which had tossed Quatre. Moving quickly he sliced up countless other dolls as he raced towards Quatre. //Dammit, I should have grabbed him before attacking the doll!// Behind him, the sounds of battle were beginning to die down as Heero, Duo, and Trowa finished destroying the rest of the dolls. Descending from his cockpit in an almost uncontrolled rush, Wufei raced to Quatre.

Lying in the grass where he'd finally ended up, Quatre muzzily tried to focus his blurry eyes. //It-it's not s-safe! I-I can't let go yet! It's not safe!//

Still, the darkness tugged determinedly at him, trying to pull him under, promising relief from his immense physical and psychological trauma.

//Not safe…// Quatre continued to think weakly even as his eyes fluttered close.

The last thing Quatre saw before falling headlong into the black abyss seductively beckoning him was a black–haired boy leaning over him, onyx eyes filled with frantic concern as he was lifted and pulled into a warm embrace. //Safe…// And Quatre finally allowed himself to slip into darkness.

* * *

Wufei sighed wearily as he stared at Quatre's prone form lying on the bed. Quatre had been unconscious for four days now and still showed no signs of waking up. Wufei felt immensely guilty; this was all his fault. If he'd destroyed the doll faster, it wouldn't have had the chance to toss Quatre aside like some useless, broken toy. 

Wufei reached forward gently and took Quatre's lifeless hand in his. //You must wake up! We need you here — all of us do.//

Once the pilots had gotten Quatre back to the safe house, they'd cleaned up the gash on his temple and wiped off what dirty they could. Now he lay on the bed as white as a corpse and as still.

//Not all that much different from how Trowa looked.// Wufei thought remorsefully. The pilots had eventually been forced to send Trowa to bed. Three days of sitting beside Quatre's bed had begun to take its toll on him, and he'd begun to look as greatly in need of medical attention as Quatre did. As it was, Wufei picked up where the other pilot had left off, keeping a vigil beside Quatre's bed. Duo and Heero had tried to get him to leave, but he'd been unwilling to. After all, it was Wufei's fault Quatre now lay limp and unconscious in bed. Even though the other pilots didn't blame him, he blamed himself. There were so many things he could have done, if only –

Wufei broke off his negative thoughts with a sigh. Dwelling on the past was not going to help Quatre get better.

As Wufei stared intently at Quatre's face, he thought he saw Quatre's eyelids flicker a bit.

"Winner!" Wufei whispered urgently, leaning forward. "Winner! Open your eyes. I know you can hear me."

The eyelids fluttered some more before Quatre finally opened cloudy blue eyes.

Sitting beside him was that black–haired boy. Confused and groggy, he tried to think. //Yes. I remember that black–haired boy from before.// The boy was speaking.

"Winner, you're awake. I'll call the others. Barton will be happy to see that you are conscious."

//Winner?// And as Quatre watched, the black–haired boy turned to leave. He wasn't sure why, but seeing the black–haired boy turn to leave sent a bolt of intense fear through Quatre. It was illogical, he didn't know why he was afraid, all he knew was that he didn't want this person to leave him. Reaching out quickly, he clutched anxiously at the boy's arm. "Please, don't leave me!" He whispered desperately, holding on tightly.

He saw the boy looking back at him in some puzzlement before speaking. "Winner? Okay, that's fine, I'm not going anywhere." And he found himself being pulled into warm arms. Closing his eyes and nuzzling into the boy's muscular chest, Quatre let out a soft sigh. //Safe.// He was safe here, in this warm and soothing embrace.

"How are you feeling, Winner?" The boy was asking with some concern.

//Winner. That must be my name.//

"Winner." He tried out his name hesitantly.

He felt himself being shifted in the boy's arms as onyx eyes peered deep into his and scrutinized him closely.

"Winner?" The boy asked.

"Winner." He repeated.

He saw the boy's brows wrinkle in confusion.

"That's my name, isn't it?" He finally asked, the boy's perplexed look making him begin to doubt his reasoning.

The boy was beginning to stare at him with an expression of shock and horror.

"Quatre!" He whispered.

Quatre wrinkled his brow a bit. "Is that your name?" He asked tentatively.

Wufei stared at Quatre, fear clawing at his insides. "Quatre is your name. Quatre Raberba Winner. My name is Wufei, remember?"

Quatre tried out the boy's name. "Wufei."

Wufei realised that Quatre's condition was far more serious than any of them had originally thought. Based on what he'd seen and heard so far, it looked as though Quatre had amnesia. The others needed to be immediately apprised of this unexpected development.

"Can you remember anything?" He asked Quatre worriedly. He watched as Quatre looked around before finally replying in a small and hesitant voice filled with fear and vulnerability, "No."

Then Quatre's voice got louder as he became hysterical. "No! No, I can't! Why can't I remember anything?!"

Wufei pulled him into a tight embrace, struggling to hold down his flailing arms and legs. "Calm down. It's going to be okay. Calm down." He soothed as calmingly as he could manage. He felt Quatre slowly subsiding in his arms even as Quatre whispered again in a small voice. "Why can't I remember?"

"I'm not sure." Wufei whispered back as he held Quatre close and rubbed soothingly across his shoulders. Wufei suspected that Quatre's loss of memory might have something to do with the fact that he'd bashed his head when he'd been thrown so viciously by the mobile doll.

"I need to speak to the others." Wufei murmured as he tried to disentangle himself from Quatre.

"No!" Quatre cried loudly, beginning to panic again. "No! Don't leave me!"

"Okay, okay." Wufei comforted as he stroked Quatre's hair. "I'm not going anywhere." He felt Quatre tightening the grip he had around Wufei's waist and knew that he'd be bruised later.

Turning his head, he called out loudly, "Maxwell!" He hoped that Duo would be able to hear him wherever he was in the house. The next moment, Quatre was thrashing in his arms again and wailing in hysterical fear.

//Shit!// Wufei thought as he struggled to calm Quatre down. //Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to yell so loudly. Idiot!// He berated himself even as he rocked Quatre in his arms, trying to calm him down. For his efforts he was punched in the solar plexus. Coughing and doubling over, he nonetheless held on tightly to Quatre and continued to murmur a bit hoarsely, "You're safe. You're safe here with me. Nothing's going to happen to you here."

Slowly, in very tiny increments, Quatre began to calm down again, and Wufei was left to wonder why he was so afraid. Sighing, Wufei sat there stroking Quatre's fine blonde hair as he rested in his arms. Wufei couldn't see what else he could do. He couldn't leave to call the others because that would send Quatre into a panic, and he couldn't call out because that would just frighten Quatre again. Hell, he didn't think he'd be able to stand another punch. It seemed to Wufei that this amnesia was going to be a very big problem.

* * *

An hour later Duo finally appeared at the doorway to see if Wufei needed anything. His violet eyes widened when they landed on the figure resting in Wufei's arms. 

"He's awake?" He whispered hopefully.

Wufei jerked around when he heard Duo's voice from the doorway. Turning, he fixed Duo with piercing eyes and said seriously. "Call the others."

Duo stared at him, confused, the smile faltering on his lips. "Is everything okay?"

"Just call the others." Wufei repeated tiredly.

Duo nodded and backed out of the room to call Trowa and Heero.

Less than a minute later, Trowa rushed into the bedroom followed by Duo and Heero. By this time, Quatre had his eyes open again and was looking at the newcomers.

"Quatre!" Trowa breathed in joy, moving forward eagerly.

"Hold up a moment, Barton." Wufei murmured a bit warningly.

Quatre stared with wide eyes as Trowa approached, and he turned his head and pressed himself fearfully backwards into Wufei's chest.

Trowa paused and stared at Wufei, bewildered at this reaction. His arms, which had been stretched out to embrace Quatre, stopped in mid–reach.

"The good news," Wufei stated a bit grimly, "is that Winner has woken up, as you can all see."

Everyone stared at Quatre who had his face pressed into Wufei's chest. It was obvious to all of them that there was a very serious 'but' somewhere.

"But," Wufei continued echoing their thoughts before continuing bluntly. "He has amnesia."

All that followed his announcement was a stunned silence.

"Amnesia?" Duo whispered in disbelief. "As in, he can't remember anything?"

"I think so." Wufei replied softly. "We'll have to call a doctor to know for certain."

Looking at Trowa's worried face and outstretched arms, Wufei murmured, "Here," before he lifted Quatre from his lap and began to hand him to Trowa.

The next moment, as everyone stared, Wufei suddenly found himself with a squirming bundle of human as Quatre tried to cling to him. "No!" He cried. "No!"

"This is Barton," Wufei explained gently. "You'll be safe with him." And as Trowa reached forward, Wufei tried to hand Quatre over again.

"No!" Quatre howled and wound his arms around Wufei's neck, holding on for dear life. Wufei was forced to stop to avoid death by strangulation.

Everyone stared in shock. Duo turned to Trowa with some concern; the other boy was pale and evidently shaken.

Trowa looked around wildly, obviously lost as to what to do.

Heero finally broke the heavy silence. "I'll go call a doctor."

"Barton," Wufei started.

Trowa shook his head, sitting down on the bed dazedly. "Just hold him for a bit, Wufei. We'll sort this out sooner or later."

Wufei nodded in agreement though he still looked at Trowa with some concern and guilt, and he subsided in his efforts, allowing Quatre to settle back more comfortably in his lap.

* * *

Half an hour later, the doctor arrived and gave Quatre a thorough examination. He peered into Quatre's eyes, examined the bump on his head, palpitated his stomach, checked his pulse, listened to his breathing, and asked many, many questions. Finally, at long last, the doctor pulled back looking thoughtful. 

"Well?" Duo demanded.

The doctor looked at Duo. "It would appear that he has amnesia."

"No shit, Sherlock." Duo snapped impatiently.

"Maxwell!" Heero barked before addressing the doctor. "Continue."

The doctor looked at all of them carefully before continuing. "He appears to have lost his memory of people and events, but he has retained such skills as reading and writing, among others. That often happens with cases of traumatic amnesia where the patient's amnesia is catalysed by physical trauma. It's not uncommon, but usually occurs in instances of some emotional andor psychological stress which is why he remembers how to do things, but not people or events."

The four pilots looked at each other in some puzzlement at this explanation. Psychological stress coupled with physical trauma? What kind of stress would trigger such amnesia?

"Why is he so afraid, doctor?" Trowa asked hoarsely, speaking up for the first time and voicing everyone else's unspoken question.

The doctor regarded Quatre thoughtfully who had again hidden his face against Wufei's chest. He'd discovered firsthand that it was impossible to separate Quatre from Wufei when he'd tried to get Quatre to move away to do the examination.

Looking at them, he asked. "How did this young man hit his head?" He gestured to the bandage wrapped around Quatre's head.

There was silence, and then Duo ventured hesitantly. "We were fighting when it happened." The doctor raised his eyebrows but chose not to comment on that, instead saying, "Perhaps his subconscious remembered that you were fighting. That would certainly explain why he is so afraid."

"Why isn't he afraid of Wufei, then?" Duo voiced the other question that had been present on everyone's mind from the moment Quatre had woken up and attached himself to Wufei.

The doctor looked at Wufei. "It could be because those two have a very close relationship."

Immediately Duo shook his head. "Trowa is closer to him."

The doctor nodded his head. "Then again, who was the first person he saw when he woke up?"

All eyes turned to Wufei.

"Well, there's your answer." The doctor commented. "I would guess that he feels most at ease with the first person he woke up to see. Almost like imprinting. He must associate safety and comfort with your friend."

"Is there anything that can be done?" Heero questioned.

The doctor shrugged. "Keep him in a friendly, non–threatening atmosphere, and allow him to adjust. He should eventually grow out of his fear. Let him slowly regain his memory. Don't try to force the memories. It may happen, but then again, it may never happen. Amnesia coupled with physical trauma to the brain is tricky to predict."

He could feel their collective shock. "I'm sorry, boys, but that's the long and short of it. All you can really do is pray."

They all seemed to wilt.

"Thank you, doctor." Heero said. Apparently he was the only one still capable of speech at this point. "I'll show you out."

Heero led the way out of the room and the doctor followed.

Left behind, Trowa, Wufei, and Duo stared at each other. None of them knew what to do. They were at a complete loss as to the next course of action.

Finally, Duo ventured tentatively. "Are you hungry, Quatre? You haven't eaten for four days."

Suddenly addressed and with three pairs of eyes focused intensely on him, Quatre shrank back even further into Wufei. He didn't know this person. Why was the person talking to him?

Duo stared at Quatre, his hurt evident in his eyes.

Wufei shifted and, putting a hand under Quatre's chin, lifted his head so that they were looking at each other.

"I want you to look at him." Wufei ordered gently.

Quatre turned his head away.

"I want you to look at him." Wufei said again, nudging tenderly at Quatre's chin so that he was forced to look at Duo.

"That is Duo." Wufei explained softly. "He won't hurt you."

Quatre stared. "Duo." Wufei repeated gently.

Finally at long last Quatre echoed, "Duo."

Duo gave a shaky grin. "Pleased to meet you."

Next Wufei gestured to Heero who had returned to the bedroom. "That is Heero."

"Heero." Quatre repeated quicker this time.

Then Wufei pointed to Trowa. "That is Trowa."

"Trowa." Quatre said obediently.

"Good." Wufei sounded pleased and relieved. "You'll be safe with Trowa."

And then in a swift move Wufei had him out of his lap and into Trowa's.

Immediately Quatre began to struggle. "No!"

Wufei stroked his hair gently. "You'll be safe with Trowa. He loves you. Hold still."

Quatre continued struggling.

"I'll get you something to eat." Wufei murmured softly and moved quickly towards the door, Duo followed close behind.

Watching him leave, Quatre felt blinding panic overtake him.

"No!" He began to howl struggling with earnest in the iron grip. "No! Let go of me!"

Trowa just held on, refusing to let go but holding Quatre as gently as he could.

"Calm down." Trowa hushed. "Calm down. You're safe. I'm here."

But Quatre just struggled harder. "Let go!" He wailed as he clawed desperately at the arms holding him.

"Wufei," Duo murmured in worry. "Perhaps I should go get the food."

Turning back, Wufei looked at Quatre who looked to be in danger of doing both himself and Trowa some serious damage.

"Perhaps that is best." Wufei agreed, moving back to sit opposite Quatre on the bed.

Seeing Wufei within reach, Quatre tried again to get out of Trowa's lap, but Trowa held on.

"Stay." Trowa pleaded a bit desperately as he held firmly onto the squirming mass in his arms.

Quatre stopped struggling, and they all watched in alarm as he instead began to cry heart–wrenching frightened sobs. Feeling his heart break, Trowa let go.

"Barton!" Wufei barked in some shock, but when he found himself with an armful of sobbing Quatre, he had no choice but to put his arms around him and gently stroke his back.

"Stop crying." He murmured tenderly. "You're safe here with us." And Quatre's sobs turned into little sniffles before finally stopping altogether, though he kept his face buried in Wufei's chest.

Wufei and Trowa stared at each other worriedly. Turning, Wufei saw Heero looking at Quatre thoughtfully.

Wufei raised an eyebrow in question at Heero, but Heero just shrugged and turned away.

"I should have been sitting with him when he woke up." Trowa whispered brokenly, and Wufei felt his heart clench in sympathetic pain.

"No." Heero refuted from where he stood. "No one could have known. You'd already been sitting with him for three days."

"But I still should have – " Trowa said.

"Heero's right." Duo interjected, re–entering the bedroom. "No one could have guessed that Quatre'd have amnesia."

Trowa just looked down in misery.

"Here." Duo urged. "Give him the soup."

Trowa took the soup from Duo with trembling fingers. Lifting a spoonful, he lifted it to Quatre's mouth. "Open up." He coaxed.

Quatre shrank back deeper into Wufei's embrace.

"You need to eat, Quatre." Wufei murmured in concern from behind him.

Reluctantly, Quatre opened his mouth, and Trowa popped the spoonful of soup in.

As soon as it was in his mouth, it began to burn him, and Quatre started choking. The next moment Wufei's hand was raised in front of his mouth.

"Spit it out." Wufei ordered quickly.

Quatre obediently opened his mouth and spat his mouthful of burning soup into Wufei's upturned palm.

"Oh God!" Trowa cried out, distressed. "Oh God, I forgot it was hot."

"Calm down, Tro." Duo comforted even as he gave Wufei a handful of tissues to wipe his hand and Quatre's mouth. "You're distressed, you're not thinking properly, no one blames you."

"No." Trowa denied, frantically shaking his head. "He could have been seriously hurt."

"He'll be fine." Wufei soothed calmly as he handed Quatre the glass of water Duo had given him.

They watched as Quatre gulped it down.

"Try again." Wufei suggested, his calm eyes locking with Trowa's green ones.

Trowa looked down at the bowl in his hand and nodded shakily. This time he made sure the soup was cool before lifting a trembling hand to Quatre's mouth.

But Quatre turned his head away and refused to eat it. Even with Wufei's coaxing, he refused to open his mouth to allow Trowa to feed him the spoonful of soup.

"Oh God." Trowa stared in guilty horror, eyes wide with pain. "He doesn't trust me anymore."

None of the other pilots had anything to say to that.

Finally Trowa handed the spoon to Wufei. "He still needs to eat." He told Wufei.

Wufei nodded slowly and lifted the spoon to Quatre's mouth. Obediently, Quatre opened his mouth and allowed Wufei to feed him the soup before swallowing.

Trowa made a choked sound, and Duo wrapped his arms around him. "It'll be alright, Tro. You'll see."

Wufei carefully blew on each spoonful of soup before lifting the spoon to Quatre's mouth. Quatre obediently swallowed every mouthful, but the bowl was only half empty when he finally turned his face away. No amount of cajoling on Wufei's part could get him to finish the bowl.

"He hasn't eaten for four days, so it's only to be expected that he won't be able to eat much." Heero said addressing no one but comforting everyone.

"Yeah." Duo agreed. "It would probably be best if Quat got some rest now." He continued, voice slightly husky with emotion.

Wufei evidently agreed with this assessment because he shifted and lifted Quatre so that he was stretched out on the bed. Attempting to pull back, Wufei found his hand caught in a tight grip.

"Don't leave." Quatre pleaded, eyes wide with fear.

Wufei tugged the blankets up over him. "I won't."

"Promise?" Quatre continued relentlessly. There was something niggling in the back of his mind about promises, telling him that it was important.

Looking at him, Wufei nodded. "I promise. Now close your eyes."

Quatre closed his eyes and within minutes was fast asleep, though he still had an iron grip on Wufei's hand.

Wufei stared at Quatre thoughtfully.

In the background he could hear Duo comforting Trowa.

"Quat just needs time to remember you, that's all." Duo was saying to him.

Still staring at Quatre pensively, Wufei spoke up. "I have an idea."

Everyone turned to look at him.


	2. Chapter 2

_I am SOOOOO sorry about not updating quicker. I kinda forgot about fanfiction for a while...I got sidetracked by Maplestory, can you blame me? Actually, I haven't checked my email in a while either...anyway, you better be happy for this. I went digging through all my files to find the secret folder where I stored all the seperate chapters, in case my parents raided my computer...I almost gave up, but then I told myself, "-author who shall not be named- needs me! Her fans need me!" So I took a deep breath and continued...anyway, read on.  
_

**A Memory Lost, A Love Found**

Chapter Two

As it turned out, Wufei's idea was a simple yet brilliant one. Once Wufei explained to the other pilots the reasoning behind his scheme, they too could see that it made perfect sense. According to Wufei's logic, Quatre felt safe with Wufei because he was the first person Quatre saw when he regained consciousness. "Well, then," Wufei said. "We'll just have to arrange it so that when Winner wakes up from his nap, the first person he sees is Barton."

Wufei then looked at the other pilots expectantly wondering whether his idea was feasible.

Duo was the first to break the stunned silence. "You're brilliant, 'Fei!" He hooted, thumping Wufei so hard on the back that Wufei actually staggered forward a few steps before regaining his balance.

"Maxwell." Wufei growled, but even he was feeling too hopeful to dampen the mood with a rant.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Wufei saw Trowa's dull eyes begin to brighten. Wufei felt that Trowa's eyes had been too full of pain and grief lately. He sincerely hoped that his plan worked as he didn't think he could bear to see the troubled look in Trowa's eyes for much longer; it wasn't as though Wufei didn't already have enough guilt on his shoulders without having to face that hurt, lost look as well.

Still, although Wufei didn't want to jinx the whole scheme, he thought that it would be best to warn the others in case his plan turned out badly. After all, there was the cliche but true saying: 'the higher one hopes, the harder one falls'.

He watched Duo and Trowa speaking to each other in quiet voices for a few minutes as he thought about how to phrase the warning. "This may not work." He eventually cautioned carefully.

Duo and Trowa stopped smiling and turned to look at him.

"I know that," Trowa finally admitted with a little sigh, "but this is the only hope we have left."

Wufei nodded in sympathetic understanding. They were grasping at straws, and perhaps not even that much.

Trowa was silent for a few minutes more before he once again spoke. "I am very aware that this may not work, but I want to know that at least we tried. I don't want you to feel guilty Wufei; none of this is your fault. I think that if you hadn't been there, Quatre would have been crushed to death." His calm green eyes lifted and locked with Wufei's onyx ones.

They only stared at each other for most likely half a minute, and yet it felt like an eternity. Some deeper, unspoken understanding passed between the two before they eventually broke their locked gazes. Wufei gave a little smile feeling the heaviness which had weighed upon his heart and mind since the accident lift. "Thank you." He whispered gruffly.

Trowa nodded.

"Don't forget, you made a promise, Chang." Heero spoke up. He'd been silent the whole time, silently observing the exchange.

"I haven't forgotten." Wufei replied, glancing at him. "We'll be sitting behind Winner on this side of the bed." At his words, all of the pilots turned to observe Quatre who was lying on his side. They saw him shift slightly, and Trowa moved to sit down in front of him. Quickly the remaining pilots moved to sit down behind him.

There they all sat silently and waited for Quatre to wake up from his nap.

XXX

Two hours later Quatre began to stir. Opening his eyes he saw the boy named Trowa watching him.

"How are you feeling?" Trowa asked softy leaning forward with hands reaching out to touch him.

Quatre jerked backwards, ignoring the hurt expression on the face of the boy in front of him. //Where's Wufei?! He said he wouldn't leave!//

As Trowa continued to reach for him, Quatre scooted backwards on the bed. He didn't realise that he'd reached the edge of it until his hands hit air, and he began to topple over the edge. "Oh!" He cried, horrified, feeling himself begin to fall down, but his descent was stopped by a pair of warm arms closing around him.

"I've got you." A voice soothed gently in his ear.

It wasn't Wufei's voice, and it wasn't Wufei's arms.

Ripping himself out of Duo's arms, Quatre crawled back towards the centre of the bed beginning to feel hysterical. "He promised!" He cried. "He promised!" He screamed loudly even as he shook in fear and wrapped his own arms around himself as though he could pretend they were Wufei's arms.

From his position against the wall, Wufei stared sadly at the trembling figure on the bed. He looked at Trowa feeling intense sorrow. It seemed to him that Trowa's eyes were a mirror reflection of his own. 'Go to him'. Trowa mouthed to Wufei.

Wufei nodded and quickly moved forward towards the bed. Sitting down on it, he closed his arms around Quatre. "I'm here." He murmured soothingly. "I haven't gone anywhere."

With a little cry Quatre wrapped his arms around Wufei's waist, burying his face into the crook of Wufei's neck. "You weren't here!" He cried plaintively, lips brushing against skin.

"I was." Wufei murmured back. "I promised, didn't I? I was right behind you."

"I thought you'd left me." Quatre whispered in a small, hurt voice.

"I'll never leave you." Wufei promised, embracing Quatre more tightly.

As Wufei stared at the other pilots over the top of Quatre's blonde head, he felt sure that the pain he saw on their faces was reflected on his own.

Looking down at the small, forlorn boy in his arms, he called quietly, "Quatre."

Quatre lifted a tear–stained face to look at him.

Wufei gestured towards Duo, Trowa, and Heero. "They're our friends."

Quatre stared at them but didn't say anything.

"They are friends." Wufei repeated carefully.

Quatre just tightened his grip on Wufei.

"Quatre." Wufei said a tad sternly.

Finally Quatre nodded. "Friends." He repeated hesitantly.

"Remember that." Wufei urged.

Quatre nodded pitifully, obviously not really believing his own acknowledgement.

Wufei spoke again. "I want you to take my hand, and take Trowa's too, and then we'll show you the rest of the house."

Quatre obediently took Wufei's hand, but when Trowa moved to take his hand, he balked sliding his hand into his pocket instead.

"Quatre." Wufei ordered firmly. "Take his hand."

Eyes lowered, Quatre reached out his hand and found it taken in Trowa's cool grasp. He tightened his grip on Wufei's hand as Wufei led them from the bedroom, but his other hand remained slack in Trowa's grasp. Trowa was forced to hold on tight to prevent that dainty hand from slipping free.

Trowa wondered sadly if this was a sign. //Perhaps if I don't hold on tight enough, Quatre will slip away like a wisp of smoke.// The thought frightened him and he held on even tighter, only loosening his grip when Quatre made a low sound of distress.

Taking him on a tour of the house with the other pilots following, Wufei pointed out the bathroom, his own bedroom and Duo, Trowa, and Heero's bedrooms. Moving downstairs, Wufei let Duo take over providing the running commentary, and Quatre was shown the family room, the lounge room, the study, and finally the kitchen. By the time the pilots reached the kitchen, Quatre was trembling from exertion.

"Sit here." Wufei urged, guiding him to a chair at the table.

Quatre sat down gratefully. He was feeling exhausted.

"Perhaps he should eat some more soup." Duo wondered aloud, concerned. "It'll help him recover his strength."

"That's a good idea." Trowa murmured.

Duo stood up and went about the task of heating some more soup for Quatre. Bringing it back to the table, he set it down in front of Quatre.

Everyone looked at the soup and then looked at Quatre. He made no move to pick up the spoon, looking instead to Wufei.

"Eat the soup." Wufei murmured gently.

Quatre continued to look at Wufei. Wufei leaned over and picked up the spoon putting it in Quatre's hand. "You'll have to learn how to do this yourself. Now eat."

Then they all waited. Quatre looked disappointed and tried to put the spoon back down.

"Eat." Wufei commanded sternly from where he was sitting beside Quatre.

Finally, with his mouth turned down, Quatre dipped the spoon in the soup and lifted a spoonful to his mouth. He blew on it a bit to cool it down, remembering how he'd burnt his tongue before, and then he ate it. After looking at Wufei again, he lifted another spoonful to his mouth. Wufei was smiling at him.

Abruptly a loud crashing sound in the room next door captured their attention.

"Shit!" Duo swore.

Letting out a startled cry and recoiling sharply from the loud noise, Quatre dropped the spoon. Then in a movement almost too quick to follow, he had himself back in Wufei's lap with his face buried in Wufei's chest.

Everyone stared, a bit shocked at this reaction. "What was that?" Wufei asked a bit absently even as he stroked Quatre's hair trying to calm him down.

"I'll go see." Duo volunteered, glancing quickly at Quatre before leaving.

Less than a minute later he returned. "The wind blew over a vase." He explained. "I've closed the window. Is he okay?" He asked worriedly, gesturing to Quatre.

Wufei looked down; Quatre was still trembling slightly. "I forgot to mention it before; he gets frightened by loud noises."

Trowa made a soft distressed sound before leaning forward to stroke one hand down Quatre's back. "Get him to finish eating." He murmured huskily to Wufei. "He'll need the food to recover his strength."

Wufei nodded and shifted Quatre slightly in his lap. "Finish your food." He coaxed.

Quatre kept his face buried in Wufei's chest. Wufei put the spoon in his hand. "Come on." He murmured.

Quatre let the spoon drop back into the bowl.

Eventually Wufei was forced to pick up the spoon himself. "Open up." He cajoled. Quatre opened his mouth. This time Wufei was able to feed him three–quarters of the soup before he refused to eat anymore.

"Perhaps a bath now?" Duo finally suggested once it became clear that no amount of coaxing on Wufei's part could get Quatre to finish the last of the soup.

Wufei shifted. "That would probably be a good idea. It's been four days since he's last bathed."

Standing up, he offered Quatre his hand again and waited until Trowa had a firm grip on Quatre's other hand before leading him to the bathroom. At the bathroom door they all paused.

Looking at Quatre, Wufei said gently. "Trowa will help you with your bath."

Quatre's eyes widened. "No!"

"Yes." Wufei said firmly. "You need him to help you with your bath."

"Won't have one." Quatre shot back petulantly.

"You will." Wufei replied sternly, and the two proceeded to stare at each other, neither one of them willing to back down.

"Wufei –" Trowa murmured.

"No." Wufei cut him off. "I will not."

Quatre's eyes grew huge and frightened, and he began to cry. Wufei looked away, knowing that he wouldn't be able to stand firm in his resolve if he continued looking at Quatre. Still not looking at Quatre, he pulled his hand from Quatre's clasp.

"Go." He barked at Trowa, forcibly pushing a now screaming Quatre into the bathroom and closing the door behind them.

Left standing outside the bathroom door, Wufei looked at Duo and Heero.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Duo ventured cautiously. They could all hear Quatre still screaming inside the bathroom.

Wufei swallowed. "Barton is Winner's lover. It wouldn't be right for me to see Winner naked."

Soon the screams turned to sobs and a minute later there was a sudden silence. Immediately all three pilots tensed up in their position beside the door. The next moment the door was jerked wide open.

"He fainted." Trowa cried, obviously panicking. "He was so upset he fainted."

Wufei, Duo, and Heero rushed into the bathroom. Sure enough, Quatre was lying unconscious in the bathtub.

Everyone turned to stare at Wufei. Looking down at Quatre, Wufei finally gave a little sigh of resignation. "Very well, I will help him with his bath." Then he fixed his eyes on Trowa. "But you will stay here with me."

Trowa shook his head. "He panics when I'm around. I think it would be best if you help him, Wufei. I don't want him to injure himself, and the doctor said we had to keep him in a safe and friendly environment."

Wufei once again regarded Quatre out cold in the bath. "Very well." He finally assented.

Duo led Trowa back out of the bathroom, rubbing his back in commiseration while whispering comforting words to him.

Left alone in the bathroom with Quatre, Wufei contemplated the other pilot for a moment longer before finally picking up the sponge and beginning to scrub at Quatre's arms.

Quatre stirred a few minutes later. "Wufei!" He cried, clearly pleased to find that he was no longer being washed by Trowa.

Wufei looked at him. "How are you feeling?" He asked in concern.

"Okay." Quatre mumbled softly, watching as Wufei moved to scrub at his chest.

Wufei cleaned Quatre almost in a clinical fashion, trying to be as neutral and non-threatening as possible, and, once he was sure Quatre no longer had any dirt or dried blood left on him, he began to work on Quatre's fine blonde hair.

"Close your eyes." Wufei muttered as he poured some shampoo into his hands. Quatre obeyed, happily sitting in blissful silence as Wufei massaged the shampoo into his hair. When he'd finished, Wufei rinsed the shampoo out and set to work with the conditioner; Quatre just sat in the bath enjoying the sensation of having his hair washed. He felt all warm and fuzzy, and there was a funny sensation in his tummy.

"Finished." Wufei grunted at long last, rinsing Quatre off one last time before lifting him out of the tub. Setting him down on the mat in the middle of the bathroom, Wufei picked up a large towel and used it to dry Quatre off.

"Tickles!" Quatre squealed as Wufei attempted to pat him dry.

"Hold still." Wufei commanded in a good-natured way, but Quatre continued to squirm around like a live eel. It warmed Wufei's heart to see Quatre finally smile. He hadn't seen a smile around the house for a while now – ever since Quatre's accident, actually. Finally, Wufei somehow managed to get Quatre dry.

When he was done, he looked at Quatre with a mischievous gleam in his eyes. "Ticklish, are you?" Wufei teased. "Let's see where else you're ticklish." And then he proceeded to attack Quatre with his fingers. Before long Quatre was a laughing, breathless mess curled up on the mat, and Wufei used the opportunity to finish drying Quatre's hair.

"Now into your pajamas." Wufei said with a smile as he helped Quatre into some cute, bunny–covered cotton pajamas. Quatre was the only one who ever wore pyjamas. The other pilots used to tease him for that. Wufei hoped with an underlying sense of sadness that there would come a day soon when the pilots could tease Quatre again and that he'd understand their jokes. Right now, Wufei wasn't sure that he would.

Finally Wufei led a clean and dry Quatre back to the other pilots who were waiting in the family room.

"I've sent the doctors an email telling them of Winner's current situation." Heero informed Wufei once they arrived.

"What did they say?" Wufei inquired.

Heero shrugged. "They told us just to hold our position and inform them if anything changed."

"That makes sense." Wufei nodded his head thoughtfully.

Silence fell over the whole group. They all looked at each other nonplussed; no one quite knew what to do. Normally everyone disappeared to his own corner of the safe house to do his own thing, but now that Quatre couldn't remember anything, no one felt like that was the right thing to do.

"Why don't we watch a movie?" Duo finally hazarded. Wufei was actually really grateful for Duo's presence. He'd been coming up with all of the ideas the whole day; first the food, then the bath, and now a movie. Without Duo, Wufei had a feeling Quatre would still be lying in bed hungry, dirty, and perhaps bored.

"Yay!" Quatre clapped in delight. "A movie!" Everyone stared at him in delighted surprise at this unexpected enthusiasm.

"A movie it is, then." Trowa finally murmured, standing up and moving towards the TV cabinet. Turning back he looked at them curiously. "Which movie?"

There was a minute's pause before Quatre spoke up again. "Cartoon!" He cried.

Now all of the pilots stared at each other. Before his accident, Quatre hadn't liked watching cartoons, preferring instead to watch documentaries. Cartoons were Duo's forte. Trowa swallowed a sob and turned back to the TV cabinet. //Quatre's changing.// The next moment he was made aware of a warm presence beside him.

"How about this one?" Duo murmured as one hand closed over Trowa's and the other one reached forward to select a 'Fruits Basket' disc. "He'll like this one."

Rubbing the back of Trowa's hand gently with his thumb, Duo popped the disc into the dvd drive. Then he released Trowa's hand and turned back to Quatre. "You'll like this one." He assured him before leading Trowa back to the couch. Pushing Trowa down beside Quatre, Duo sat down beside him and hit the play button on the remote. The opening credits for 'Fruits Basket' began. Once again, Duo took Trowa's hand, and Trowa gave him a grateful smile. Duo's presence had a calming effect on his building panic and despair. Duo was the only thing keeping him grounded as his world rapidly crumbled around him.

Three discs later, Duo, Trowa, and Heero left Wufei and Quatre still sitting on the couch watching 'Fruits Basket' while they went to prepare dinner.

Duo efficiently sliced the carrots while Trowa prepared the lamb. Heero set the table.

"It'll be okay, Tro." Duo once again tried to reassure Trowa when he saw Trowa pause and stare off into the distance for the third time that night since they'd begun the preparations for dinner.

Trowa turned worried eyes to Duo. "At first I thought that it would be okay – "

Heero and Duo saw him swallow and lick dry lips, "but now I'm not so sure – I'm not so sure it'll be okay anymore." His voice cracked and he turned away from them.

"Trowa." Duo whispered in empathetic sorrow, putting down his knife before moving forward and closing his arms around his friend. Trowa allowed himself to be held.

A few minutes passed in silence before Heero spoke up. "If it turns out that Winner truly has forgotten you, perhaps it would be best if you let go of him."

The next moment Trowa had torn himself from Duo's embrace and slammed Heero against the wall, green eyes blazing with fury into ice blue ones. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" He snarled.

Heero didn't even flinch. "If that truly does happen," Heero murmured. "Will you try to hold on forever, or will you give yourself a chance and move on?"

The anger left Trowa quickly leaving him feeling shaky inside. He could not answer Heero's question yet, but somewhere deep inside he had a feeling that he would have to before this whole fiasco was over.

"Heero…" He heard Duo start to say.

"Duo." Trowa replied in a manner meant to end the conversation; he quietly moved back to cooking the lamb. Duo closed his mouth, but he continued to stare at Heero who looked back at him impassively.

As he continued to turn the lamb under the grill, Trowa wondered whether Heero knew something he didn't.

Dinner was soon ready, and Duo called Quatre and Wufei in to eat. Turning off the TV, the two made their way to the kitchen table.

Wufei had only just taken a seat when Quatre tried to climb into his lap. As everyone watched, Wufei picked Quatre up carefully and firmly deposited him back into his own seat. "Stay." He ordered. Quatre pouted. Sitting beside Quatre, Trowa cut all of his food into bite–sized pieces for him, but when he handed Quatre a spoon, Quatre refused to eat.

"Eat." Wufei commanded.

Quatre ignored him.

"Come now, Quatre," Wufei switched to cajoling instead. "You need to eat."

Quatre picked up his spoon and held it out to Wufei.

"You have to do this yourself." Wufei refused sternly.

Quatre went back to ignoring him.

"Perhaps you aren't hungry then." Wufei commented calmly, and then as the other pilots watched, Wufei picked up his knife and fork and began to eat his own dinner.

"Eat." Wufei said to the others, ignoring Quatre.

Following his lead, the others began to eat, hoping that Quatre would begin to eat as well if he saw everyone else eat. Still, by the time the pilots finished dinner, Quatre hadn't stopped staring at the wall for a single moment, and his plate remained untouched.

Wufei gave a little sigh of defeat; it was obvious that Quatre was going to be stubborn, and they couldn't afford to let him go hungry, not if they wanted him to recover anyway. Reaching over, Wufei picked up Quatre's spoon. Hearing the 'clink' the silver spoon made on the chinaware, Quatre turned around slowly.

"Open up." Wufei murmured in some bemused resignation, holding up a spoonful of lamb and carrots, and Quatre did, obediently chewing on the mouthful Wufei had given him. Feeling childishly pleased at his triumph, he flashed Wufei a cute grin.

Watching this interaction, Trowa felt a small shiver of fear run through him. Wufei had never been known for his patience. He often lost his temper over the smallest things. Trowa wondered how long it would be before Quatre's clinginess made Wufei lose his temper. He didn't want that to happen. Looking up, his eyes caught Duo's, and he could almost see Duo thinking the same thing. Of all the pilots, only Heero didn't seem to have that worry on his mind. He was calmly focusing on his dessert. Once again Trowa was forced to wonder whether Heero knew something he didn't.

XXX

After dinner, Wufei helped Quatre brush his teeth before leading him to his bedroom where Trowa was waiting. There he attempted to settle Quatre down in bed, but this time Quatre refused to let go of Wufei; instead he wound his arms around Wufei's neck and attempted to draw him down onto the bed. "You have to stay with me!" He cried urgently.

"Trowa will stay with you." Wufei told him, but Quatre refused to let go. When he'd had his nap earlier and he'd woken to find Wufei gone, he'd felt abandoned. He wouldn't let that happen again. "No! You!" He cried tearfully. "He can go to his own bedroom."

Wufei looked helplessly at Trowa, wondering how to tell Quatre that this was Trowa's bedroom.

Trowa's hurt showed clearly on his face. "Stay with him." He finally murmured when he'd overcome his pain sufficiently to speak again. "I'll sleep in your bedroom."

"Barton—" Wufei started to say, looking at Trowa in concern.

"No." Trowa shook his head. "Stay with him." And he stood up and quickly made his way to the door.

Before he passed through, Wufei spoke up again. "Barton."

Trowa turned around, hearing a note in Wufei's voice that he couldn't quite identify.

"He will be safe with me." Wufei said gently, his expression coupled with his tone telling Trowa all he needed to know.

Trowa nodded in gratitude, fully aware that Wufei was telling him that he wouldn't take advantage of Quatre in any way — not that Trowa had really been worried about such a thing from Wufei, but he appreciated that Wufei was trying his best to keep things from spinning out of control.

Turning, he made his way out of the bedroom feeling a stabbing pain in his heart. He paused when a shadow crossed in front of his eyes. Looking up he saw Duo leaning against the wall.

"Tro." Duo acknowledged with a small sad smile.

"Duo." He replied in return.

"You don't want to sleep in 'Fei's room." Duo pointed out with a small grin. "He'll kill you if you mess anything up. Sleep with me tonight."

Trowa stared at him. He was aware that Duo was trying to comfort him. "I don't want to impose –" He began.

"Who's imposing?" Duo asked half-mockingly, flashing him a brilliant grin before grabbing his arm and tugging him towards his bedroom. "Anyway, my hot water bottle's broken." He smiled teasingly. "You can be its substitute."

And Trowa couldn't help but smile back. Duo's smiles were infectious and his warmth was pushing back the cold Trowa had been feeling ever since Quatre had woken up and Trowa had discovered that his lover had somehow forgotten him. Duo had been nothing short of a solid rock of emotional support and encouragement the whole time.

"Thank you." He murmured to Duo, realising with a start exactly how much he meant those two simple words.

"No problem." Duo replied softly, before leading Trowa into his bedroom.


	3. Chapter 3

_Sorry about the late update. My own laptop's monitor stopped working, so I had to move all of my important files onto a jump drive, which I promptly lost for three weeks. But I found it today, and I'm editing it on my new, shiny laptop. With wireless internet! w00t!_

**Chapter Three**

Three weeks had passed, and though, Quatre seemed to have recovered physically, emotionally he didn't seem to be getting any better. He panicked if Wufei so much as tried to leave his side to go to the bathroom. Wufei had become his full-time carer: feeding him his three meals a day, helping him bathe, sleeping with him at night, and keeping him entertained. Wufei had become surprisingly adept at finding things to amuse Quatre with, and most of his time was spent playing games with Quatre, reading to him, or sitting in front of the TV holding him while they watched cartoons together.

None of the pilots could understand why Quatre was so afraid. The doctor had mentioned psychological trauma, but though they racked their brains for days, none of the pilots could think of any psychological trauma that might have had such a severe impact on Quatre and his behaviour.

"You're his lover," Wufei remarked in some frustration to Trowa one day. "Surely you know something!"

But Trowa had shaken his head miserably. Thinking the situation, he suddenly realised that he didn't actually know all that much about Quatre. Quatre never spoke much about himself, about his past. He seemed to always be concentrated on other people. It was with some guilt and shame that Trowa became conscious of how much his lover had focused on him and his needs, while he hadn't seemed to return the attention.

Perhaps the biggest surprise for everyone was Wufei's patience. In the first week when the pilots had discovered that Quatre was amnesic and he'd attached himself quite demandingly to Wufei, Trowa kept expecting Wufei to lose his temper. Yet, it had been three weeks now, and Wufei still hadn't lost his temper. Not once had Wufei raised his voice to Quatre or even begun ranting. It was true that occasionally he was stern when Quatre was being difficult, but he'd never yelled at Quatre. In fact, it appeared as though he had a never-ending well of patience.

//And a good thing that there was this unexpected side to Wufei; he certainly needs to have patience to deal with Quatre lately.// Trowa thought, because Wufei had to hand–feed Quatre three meals a day, help him brush his teeth, help him bathe, entertain him, and generally put up with Quatre's constant clinginess and occasional bouts of fear when loud noises startled him. Heero now had to put a silencer on his gun whenever he went outside for target practice.

Sitting in the lounge room with a moment to think, Trowa painfully asked himself the one question that had been niggling at the back of his mind for days. //Would I have been able to do all that Wufei has done?// Indeed, would Trowa have been able to clean Quatre, feed him, play with him, and comfort him? As much as Trowa wanted to stand up and shout 'yes!' at the top of his lungs, he couldn't because he wasn't so sure. He wasn't sure if he possessed the patience which Wufei was showing so admirably these days. There had been times when Quatre's clinginess had grated on his own nerves, and he'd found himself clenching his fists. And the ironic thing was, he wasn't even the one Quatre was clinging to. //Surely, it must be worse for Wufei.// There were times when Trowa just wished Quatre could eat by himself without needing Wufei to feed him. There were times Trowa wished that they didn't have to keep such careful vigil over Quatre. He was used to his self-sufficient lover. Where had that person gone?

//Perhaps it's for the best that the first person Quatre saw when he woke up was Wufei after all.// Trowa sighed sadly.

He felt Duo start in surprise beside him.

//Did I say that aloud?// He wondered, a bit abashed at himself. Turning to look at Duo who was now looking rather pensive himself, he realised that he must have.

Duo, for his part, did not say anything in reply to Trowa's quiet whispered comment. In a way, he felt that he could understand what Trowa was saying. He'd been thinking the same thing for a while now.

Not once had Wufei lost his temper with Quatre even though there had been many times Duo himself had wanted to. He realised that it was the amnesia making Quatre clingy, but at times remembering this fact had not stopped him from getting annoyed with Quatre. Sometimes Duo had just wanted to pick Quatre up and shake him. He wanted his friend back, the guy who smiled sweetly and showed such concern over the welfare of his friends. He wanted his friend who tried to mother them, encouraged them, helped keep them together. Where had the old Quatre gone? Was he gone forever? Duo'd even seen Trowa clenching his fists a few times. Not that shaking him would have done Quatre any good other than hurting him and perhaps frightening him further, but it didn't stop him from shamefully wanting to do so from time to time.

Perhaps Trowa was right; perhaps it was best that Quatre had woken up to Wufei's presence. //Who knew that Wufei had such limitless patience?// Duo knew that Trowa felt guilty. He could see it written all over Trowa's usually impassive face. He knew that Trowa probably had a hard time accepting that he didn't have the same patience that Wufei did for his own lover. It hurt Duo to see Trowa so pained. He put a comforting hand on Trowa's shoulder, hoping that it would convey empathetic understanding of the situation. Trowa's eyes locked with his, and the other pilot gave a grateful nod of acknowledgement.

Together they turned back to watch as Wufei read to Quatre from a children's book filled with bright pictures. They watched as Quatre giggled at Wufei's big, bad wolf voice.

"And I'll huff, and I'll puff…" Wufei and Quatre chorused together before Quatre once again dissolved into helpless giggles, and Wufei gave him a gentle smile at this innocent joy.

Looking up from the colourful book for a brief moment, Wufei saw Trowa staring at Quatre with sorrowful eyes. The smile faded from Wufei's lips. He'd thought that perhaps Trowa was beginning to recover, but no, who could ever recover from discovering that their lover had forgotten them.

Looking thoughtfully at Quatre, Wufei resolved to do something about it. Quatre was strong enough now; it was time he spent more of his time with his lover. With his lips firmed into a grim line, Wufei nodded his head in determination. He knew what he had to do.

Trowa continued to stare at Quatre with mournful eyes. //Surely if I loved him I wouldn't feel impatient with him. Is that it? Do I not love him as much as I think I do?//

XXX

That night as Quatre lay curled up beside him in bed, Wufei turned around to look at the sleeping boy. Stroking Quatre's baby soft blonde hair away from his face, Wufei leaned forward. "I'm sorry." He whispered achingly. "I know this will hurt, little one, but it's for your own good. It'll all be better soon, you'll see." Then he dropped a light kiss on Quatre's forehead.

XXX

At breakfast the next morning Quatre waited patiently for Wufei to begin feeding him. He swung his legs cheerfully as he sat in his usual chair. Wufei placed his breakfast in front of him and sat down at the table.

Quatre watched, confused when Wufei picked up a banana and took a bite out of it.

"Breakfast?" Quatre asked softly, puzzlement obvious in his voice.

"No." Wufei said calmly.

The other three pilots lifted their heads at this change in routine.

"We're not eating?" Quatre inquired, looking even more puzzled at the bowl of cereal in front of him.

"Not that we're not eating." Wufei explained calmly. "I'm not going to feed you."

He ignored the stunned expressions being directed at him.

"Why?" Quatre questioned somewhat plaintively.

"Good question." Wufei growled darkly, shifting so that his cold dark eyes bore into Quatre's clear blue eyes. "And the answer is simply that I've had enough. I'm sick of your clinginess. You can feed yourself, or you can starve. I don't care." And then ignoring the shocked expression on everyone's face, and in Heero's case, the thoughtful expression, Wufei pushed his chair back from the table.

Quatre blinked in shock. "Wufei?" He called shakily, pushing back his chair and running after the figure striding from the room.

Wufei turned around. "Enough!" He hissed. "I've had enough! I've had enough of you, of this! Trowa is your lover. If you're hungry, go to him!" And he stormed out.

There was a pregnant silence as Quatre stared in bewildered pain after Wufei, and then he gave a choked sob and fled to the bedroom he shared with Wufei.

//I don't understand! What did I do wrong? I'm too clingy? That's not him. That's not Wufei! Wufei would never yell at me!// And finally making it to his bedroom, he threw himself down onto the bed and began to cry huge sobs that shook his whole frame.

In the kitchen, Trowa, Duo, and Heero stared at each other and suddenly Trowa pushed his chair back, eyes blazing with anger. He intended to confront Wufei. //What the hell was he thinking, yelling at Quatre like that?!//

"Don't!" Heero barked.

"Why the hell not?! You saw what he did." Trowa growled menacingly, green eyes flashing, hands clenched into fists.

Heero stared back at him. "Your emotions have clouded your mind; you know Chang as well as I do. Think for a moment!" Heero snapped.

Green eyes clashed with blue ones, and then Trowa's eyes widened in comprehension. Deflating, he sank back down into his chair.

Duo watched them both for a moment before finally voicing incredulously. "It was an act?"

"Hn." Heero grunted.

There was another long moment of silence, and then Trowa quietly stood up and left the room to seek out Wufei. He only had to search a few rooms before he eventually found Wufei sitting in the lounge room staring at a colourful book in his hands.

"Wufei." Trowa murmured.

Wufei didn't look at him.

"He'll hate you." Trowa noted quietly.

"It's better this way." Wufei eventually replied after a few moments of silence. "This might hurt Winner in the short run, but eventually it'll be better for him. You know that as well as I. It would be best if you went and comforted him."

Trowa knew that Wufei was right. Unable to think of anything to say, Trowa instead dropped a hand on Wufei's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze before leaving to follow Wufei's advice.

XXX

Entering Quatre's bedroom, Trowa found him lying face down on the bed sobbing his eyes out. He was clutching a pillow tightly to his chest. Looking at the head of the bed and seeing that the pillow was missing from the right side, Trowa realised that Quatre was most likely holding Wufei's pillow.

"Quatre." He murmured, moving forward and attempting to put his arms around his lover.

"Go away!" Quatre cried, pushing Trowa away.

Trowa pulled him forcibly into a hug. "I won't." He murmured. "I love you. I won't go."

"Go away!" Quatre screamed, struggling in earnest. "Let go of me!" And with superhuman strength, he pushed Trowa so hard he fell off the bed himself.

"Quatre!" Trowa exclaimed worriedly, clambering off the bed and moving towards Quatre, but Quatre hurriedly backed away into a corner of the bedroom.

Trowa sighed and ran a hand distractedly through his hair. "Very well, I'll just stay here then, and I'll be here until you're ready to accept me." And he sat back down on the bed and watched Quatre.

XXX

Quatre stayed curled up in his corner for the rest of the day. When Trowa tried to put a blanket on him, Quatre only pushed it away angrily and actually clawed at Trowa, managing to leave four deep scratch marks on Trowa's right arm.

Ignoring Trowa who'd moved back to the bed, Quatre kept repeated to himself, almost like a mantra//That's not Wufei. Wufei would never get angry at me.//

Something flashed through his mind. //Honour.// His head lifted with a start. //Honour?// He didn't know why that word had come to mind and didn't bother worrying over it; instead he went back to his ceaseless chant. //That's not Wufei. Wufei would never get angry at me.//

When Duo brought dinner that night, Quatre refused to eat. No amount of coaxing on Duo or Trowa's part would get him to eat. Instead he continued to sit curled up beside the wall. Eventually Duo sadly left Trowa sitting with Quatre and went down to have his own dinner.

At the dinner table, all was quiet. Wufei didn't speak much, and Heero never spoke anyway. Duo kept looking at Wufei but didn't say anything either. He could understand why Wufei had done what he did.

"I'm done." Wufei finally announced, picking up his untouched dinner plate and dumping its contents in the trash. Then he left, disappearing back up the stairs.

Duo looked curiously at Heero. "What do you think 'Ro?"

Heero swallowed his mouthful before answering. "There's nothing to worry about."

Duo stared at him incredulously and opened his mouth to retort, but Heero cut him off.

"I said, don't worry." Heero snapped and went back to eating his dinner.

Duo stared at Heero, confused at these cryptic remarks, and finally following Heero's lead, continued eating his dinner.

XXX

The next morning Trowa reappeared at the table with Quatre's untouched breakfast.

"Still not eating?" Duo murmured worriedly.

"No." Trowa replied tiredly. "He just keeps sitting curled up in a ball in the corner of the room."

Wufei ignored them and continued to sip his tea.

Heero stood up silently. "Chang, target practice."

Wufei lifted his head. "Nothing better to do." He murmured absently, following Heero from the room.

Trowa and Duo looked at each other.

"What do we do now?" Duo whispered, at a complete loss.

Trowa just shook his head. He didn't know either.

XXX

Quatre refused to eat lunch that day, too.

Trowa was beginning to worry. It had only been three weeks since Quatre had woken up from his coma, and Trowa was sure he wasn't yet healthy enough to be skipping so many meals. Duo had tried every trick in the book to get Quatre to eat, but all that had resulted in was Quatre's tossing the food at his head. It had taken Trowa the better part of an hour to clean the food up from the floor, and it had taken Duo even longer to clean it from his hair.

Trowa found himself clenching his fists. //Why can't Quatre just eat!// He quickly shook his head and took a deep breath to calm down. He didn't have the right to get upset; Quatre was ill and not acting like himself. He had to remain calm. He took a few more deep breaths before tentatively approaching Quatre again.

"You need to eat." He murmured gently.

Quatre turned away and buried his face into the pillow he was still clutching to his chest. Trowa absently wondered whether the pillow still smelled like Wufei. He supposed it must if Quatre was still burying his face into it.

"Please eat." Trowa resorted to begging, but Quatre didn't even look at him. Trowa tried to blink back the tears of hurt and anger, but they fell anyway.

XXX

When Quatre left his dinner untouched for the second night in a row, Trowa went to find Wufei. He found Wufei back in his own bedroom dusting off his shelves.

"I've neglected my room for so long it's gone dusty." Wufei murmured distractedly when Trowa stepped into the room.

"Go see him." Trowa pleaded.

Wufei walked to the window and looked out. "You know as well as I do, Barton, that it's for the best this way."

Trowa stayed silent for a long time before he finally spoke. "How do you know it's for the best?"

Wufei turned around, confused. "What?"

Trowa repeated his question. "How do you know it's for the best?"

Wufei stared at him as though he'd suddenly sprouted horns. "You don't think your spending time with your lover is for the best?"

Trowa moved to stand beside Wufei to look out of the window.

"I was doing some reflective thinking the other day." He began softly.

Wufei remained silent.

"I won't lie to myself, and I won't lie to you either, Wufei." Trowa gave a sigh full of pained self-understanding. "Do you know what I asked myself?"

Wufei shook his head, staring at Trowa mutely.

Trowa gave him a sad smile. "I asked myself whether I'd have had the patience if I'd been in your position. Do you know what answer I finally gave myself?"

Wufei stared at him in growing shock, already anticipating the unexpected answer.

Trowa nodded his head solemly. "That's right, Wufei. Truthfully? I wouldn't have had the patience to put up with Quatre's clinginess." Ignoring Wufei's shock, Trowa continued to speak. "There have been times when I've just wanted to shake him. To hurt him. To wake him up from whatever it is he's stuck in. You've never done that once. Now tell me, Wufei, what do you think is best for Quatre right now?"

Wufei remained silent. "Barton." He finally began.

Trowa shook his head. "Nothing you say can change that fact, Wufei. In fact, I'm beginning to wonder whether I love him as much as I'd previously believed." He heard Wufei swallow, it was loud in the sudden silence of the room. "Go to him, Wufei. He needs you."

There was another minute of silence, and then Wufei turned to leave the room. Pausing at the door Wufei spoke. "Whatever else happens, Barton, when Winner regains his memories, he'll still need your love." And then he turned and walked out.

"Will he?" Trowa murmured softly to himself. "Or will he need yours?"

XXX

Pausing outside Quatre's bedroom door, Wufei took a deep breath for fortitude; finally he turned the knob and took a cautious step into the bedroom.

"Quatre?" He asked tentatively, peering into the gloom. Immediately a barrage of objects came flying in his direction. "Get out!" Quatre screeched.

A few of the objects managed to make contact with Wufei before he had the good sense to begin ducking. Dodging several marble statues that were aimed at his head and which instead shattered against the plaster walls, Wufei managed to reach the corner Quatre had hidden himself in.

"Get out!" Quatre continued to screech wildly.

Ignoring the screams, Wufei pulled him into his arms, holding him immobile but not hurting him.

"Quatre, calm down!" He ordered.

"No! No! Get away from me! Let me go!" Quatre cried.

Wufei just held onto him tighter. "I'm sorry." He breathed sorrowfully into the silky blonde hair.

Immediately Quatre stopped struggling in his arms.

"Why?" He whispered plaintively. "Why?"

Wufei shook his head sadly, stroking Quatre's back. "I'm sorry. There are no excuses for what I did."

"You said you were sick of me." Quatre whispered tearfully.

Wufei shook his head again. "I'm sorry. I just didn't want Barton to be hurt. He loves you. I'm not sick of you. I'll never get sick of you."

Quatre just began to howl in his arms and buried his face into Wufei's collarbone. "Promise you'll never do that again! Promise you'll never leave me!"

Wufei rocked Quatre in his arms. "I promise. I won't ever do that again, I'll never leave you." And he held Quatre tightly as he cried.

"I love you." Quatre whispered yearningly.

Wufei pulled back, shocked and stared at Quatre. "You don't understand everything." He said in a fierce but soft tone to Quatre. "You don't know what you're saying. I don't want to hear it anymore."

Quatre cried even louder. "I love you! I don't care what you say. I love you!"

A gasp came from the doorway. Turning his head, Wufei saw Heero, Trowa, and Duo standing there. Trowa was whiter than a ghost. Then he turned to bolt.

"Dammit!" Wufei barked. "Don't you dare leave, Barton!"

Trowa paused mid–step.

"Come in here." Wufei growled.

After a tensed moment of obvious indecision, Trowa finally entered the room.

Wufei pulled Quatre away from him and looked at him firmly. "Look at him." He growled, pointing at Trowa. Quatre ignored him.

"Look at him!" Wufei snapped. Reluctantly Quatre turned his head and looked at Trowa.

"You do not love me." Wufei refuted. "He is the one you love. He is your lover."

Quatre glared at Wufei. "He's not my lover." He denied stubbornly. "I love you!"

Trowa gave a choked cry and fled the room.

"Shit." Wufei swore. "Barton!" Wufei roared after the rapidly disappearing figure.

"'Fei." Wufei looked at Duo who'd just spoken.

"I'll go after him. You take care of Quat." Duo murmured, gesturing to Quatre who was now sobbing incoherently in Wufei's arms.

Looking down, Wufei realised that his loud swearing had frightened Quatre again. "Damn." He muttered as he stroked Quatre's back while whispering comforting words to him. Looking up again, he saw that Duo was gone but that Heero was watching him. They stared at each other.

Heero suddenly moved. "Take care of him." Then he was gone.

Wufei let out a sigh and went back to stroking Quatre's trembling frame.

Things had just gone to hell.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four:

Trowa fled to Duo's bedroom seeking refuge. It was only natural for him to head to Duo's room since he'd spent the past three weeks rooming with Duo. In fact, he'd started to feel comfortable enough to forget sometimes that it wasn't his room originally. Sitting down heavily on the bed they shared, Trowa closed his eyes as though that would somehow make the pain would go away. Unconsciously he rubbed his arms in a bracing motion and forced himself to face the reality of the situation. Thoughts he hadn't wanted to acknowledge were suddenly clamouring in his brain, loudly demanding his attention.

He gave a little sigh and then looked up when he heard a scraping sound. Duo had just entered the bedroom and was silently watching him.

"I think he really does love Wufei." Trowa whispered brokenly, finally breaking the oppressive silence after a long while.

"No, Tro!" Duo immediately refuted, shaking his head vehemently as he moved towards the bed to take Trowa's hand in his. Sitting beside Trowa, Duo soothed, "It's the amnesia talking, that's all."

Trowa regarded Duo sadly, completely unconvinced. "You don't understand. I think…" Trowa shook his head and then continued. "I think… that even if I'd been sitting with Quatre when he had woken up, he'd still have wanted Wufei... instead of me." He finished in an aching whisper.

Duo stared at him but wisely didn't say anything. Instead he sat there and listened attentively, knowing that Trowa needed to get his feelings off his chest.

"Do you know," Trowa mused huskily, "Quatre has always worried most about Wufei."

Duo just squeezed Trowa's hand tightly.

Staring blankly at the floor Trowa continued to speak, his voice softening as he lost himself in his memories. "There was a time – " he paused and cleared his throat. "One time, you three had gone on a mission, and only Quatre and I were left in the safe house. We were – " Trowa choked a bit. "We were making love when you unexpectedly phoned back."

Duo listened carefully, not making a sound.

Trowa continued to recount what had to be a miserable tale. "We didn't pick up; I was buried deep inside Quatre at the time, so we let the answering machine take the call."

He paused for another long minute, gathering his thoughts. "And then you said that Wufei had been injured." Trowa gave a strangled laugh that held little amusement and a world of pain. "I'd always known Quatre could be strong and fast, but I certainly hadn't expected to have that demonstrated at just that moment. He pushed me off him so quickly and so forcefully that I actually fell off the bed." Trowa shook his head, his breath hitching a bit. "And then he ran to take the call. He wasn't even hard anymore; hearing that Wufei was hurt had the same effect on his passion as a bucket of cold water." Trowa's voice broke, and Duo wrapped his arms around him in commiseration.

Swallowing hard, Trowa continued to speak. "You said that you were going to be delayed because of Wufei's injuries, but that it was nothing life threatening." Duo nodded in remembrance and waited for Trowa to continue.

Trowa swiped at his eyes and glanced quickly at Duo before looking down at the ground again. "Even hearing that, Quatre didn't come back to bed to finish our lovemaking. Instead, he spent the night pacing. He even seemed to have forgotten I was there at all. And he didn't stop worrying until you three made it back and he could see for himself that Wufei wasn't going to die."

Trowa gave a barking laugh that sounded harshly to both his and Duo's ears. "I didn't think much of it at the time because Quatre is so kind-hearted; he always cares about everyone's wellbeing. But, now looking back, I think I should have realised at that time the truth of the matter."

Duo looked sad. "Trowa."

Trowa lifted his eyes and looked at Duo. "Wufei is too honourable. From the beginning, he's been trying to do everything possible in his power to get Quatre to acknowledge me. I know that he'd never deliberately try to take Quatre away from me. He's probably feeling eaten alive by guilt right now..."

Trowa lapsed off into a thoughtful silence. He seemed to be deep in thought. Finally he seemed to come to a decision. He stood up slowly, scrubbing quickly at his eyes again to wipe away any trace of his tears.

"Trowa." Duo tried again.

Trowa turned to look at him.

"I'm sorry." Duo finally said mournfully.

Trowa smiled just as mournfully back. "It's not your fault. In a way, I think this whole experience has shown me that I'm not capable of loving Quatre as much as Wufei is."

Duo opened his mouth to deny that assumption, but Trowa shook his head to forestall his words. "I think you realise it, too, Duo."

Duo gave a little sigh of agreement. "Yeah, Wufei treats Quatre differently than I thought he would."

Trowa nodded sadly. "There are times when I'm with Quatre and I just want to hurt him. I just want to scream in frustration. Where has the Quatre I know gone to? Why isn't he here with me when I need him to be? And I realise exactly how selfish and unworthy I am. After all, it's not Quatre's fault that any of this has happened. How can I blame him as if it were?" Trowa turned to look at Duo with a small bitter smile on his face. "Would you have been able to put up with it?" And he turned to leave the room.

From behind him Duo spoke. "Not for Quatre. But for you. Yes. Yes, I would."

Trowa froze in his tracks, at first not believing what he'd heard. //Am I really that pitiful?// "Don't feel sorry for me." He finally bit out harshly and then he made to leave again.

Before he'd taken more than two steps, he found himself being held back by a pair of warm arms circling him from behind.

"Give me a chance to show you that I love you. Give yourself a chance to see if you can love me back." Duo whispered plaintively from behind him, burying his face into Trowa's back.

Trowa just stood there, shaken; some dim part of his brain couldn't even begin to comprehend what was happening. He felt confusion, shock, disbelief, but one thought stood out clearly in his mind. Duo had been there for him the entire time. He'd spent the past three weeks comforting Trowa and putting up with his anger and moods. Duo had whole-heartedly and unfailingly been by Trowa's side throughout the entire ordeal.

"I need to think." He whispered finally at last.

Duo pulled back slowly, reluctantly releasing Trowa from his arms. "I understand." He murmured, not looking at Trowa. Trowa turned to stare at the crown of Duo's head for one more moment before leaving the room.

Left behind, Duo sat down on the bed, feeling a bit numb. //I understand. You could never accept me, could you, Trowa?//

XXX

Trowa found Wufei and Quatre in the bedroom they now shared. Quatre was looking at the pictures in his 'Fairy Tales' book, and Wufei was watching him with a troubled expression on his face.

Wufei looked up when Trowa appeared but didn't say anything. If anything, the troubled expression on his face grew even more pronounced.

Trowa gazed at Wufei. "I have a few things I want to say to Quatre."

Wufei looked at him. "I can't really leave." He murmured apologetically. "He'll get upset."

Trowa shook his head. "That's fine. I think you should hear it, too."

Wufei stared at him in some puzzlement. Trowa was looking very serious and sombre. Wufei wondered what it was that Trowa wanted to tell Quatre. //I'll find out soon, I suppose.// He thought to himself just that little bit worriedly. He had a feeling that whatever it was, it wasn't going to be good.

Trowa sat down opposite Quatre on the bed. "Quatre." He murmured gently, calling his former lover's attention to him.

Quatre lifted his head from his colourful book and peered at him curiously but without any other emotion.

"Little one." Trowa whispered poignantly, leaning forward to take his hand. Quatre pulled back, pressing himself into Wufei's chest. Trowa gave a little sigh of sad resignation but did not attempt to touch Quatre again. He waited until he had established eye contact with Quatre once again before he said gently. "I'm breaking up with you."

Quatre just stared, not saying anything and showing little reaction, but Wufei exploded. "What the hell, Barton?!"

Trowa didn't look at him. "I'm breaking up with Quatre."

"Look." Wufei snapped. "If this is about what he said earlier, he doesn't know what he's saying. You can't break up with him because of that."

Trowa finally broke eye contact with Quatre and turned to stare at Wufei. "That's not the reason." He replied calmly.

"Then what is?" Wufei growled. "Damnit, you know he's amnesic! He doesn't love me. He loves you."

"That's not the reason." Trowa snarled, his green eyes glinting as he glared angrily at Wufei. Hearing Quatre's whimper and seeing Wufei immediately move to soothe him, Trowa realised that he'd lost his temper yet again. He took three deep calming breaths before finally explaining quietly. "You love him more than I do."

Trowa could feel the shock coming off Wufei in nearly palpable waves. Wufei was staring at him with a stunned, horrified look. Then as quickly as it'd appeared, the expression was gone, wiped from Wufei's face and replaced with a blank look as if it had never been. "Barton!" Wufei huffed. "That's nonsense."

Trowa looked at him calmly. "No more lies, Wufei."

Wufei's mouth which had been opening for another comment closed with an audible snap.

"Take care of him for me." Trowa added softly before getting up from the bed and walking towards the door.

"Barton." Wufei called from behind him.

Trowa paused at the door frame.

"What happens," Wufei questioned, his voice low, "when he regains his memories and discovers that his lover has left him? Can you even begin to imagine how betrayed and abandoned he'll feel?"

Trowa turned around to look at Wufei. Giving Wufei a small, sad, smile he replied, "He has always loved you, Wufei. I think he'll understand my decision and forgive me for it." And then he passed through the door leaving Wufei in a state of shock.

Still staring after Trowa in disbelief, Wufei barely heard Quatre pipe up cheerily. "I love you!"

Wufei regarded him sadly. Quatre didn't notice the expression because he'd gone back to looking at the pictures in his book. //You say you love me now, but can you really love me when you regain your memory?// Wufei questioned silently. Then he cuddled Quatre close and rested his chin on top of Quatre's head, snuffling his hair. Quatre just turned another page.

Absently Wufei stroked Quatre's hair gently with one hand. //Poor Trowa, he doesn't deserve this.//

"Barton will be fine. Maxwell will take care of him."

Wide-eyed in surprise, Wufei lifted his head and saw Heero leaning against the doorway. //Is he a mind reader or something? And when did he get here?//

"Maxwell?" Wufei murmured hesitantly in question as he attempted to assimilate that information, but Heero wasn't done with his shocking revelations yet. As succinct as always, he continued on to add. "Winner loves you. Towards the end, just before the accident, he was beginning to come to terms with that fact."

Wufei opened and closed his mouth a few times, nonplussed, staring hard at Heero, wondering if he was hallucinating. When nothing changed, Wufei accepted that he wasn't experiencing sensory illusions, and he finally managed to get out through his constricted throat, "How do you know?"

Heero shrugged nonchalantly. "I heard him. He was sitting under the apple tree muttering to himself." Heero gazed at Wufei for a few extra seconds before adding, "I was sitting in the tree." Then he left on silent feet.

Left behind, all Wufei could do was clutch at Quatre feeling slightly light-headed from the shock of all of these unexpected confrontations. It was not until Quatre squeaked in pained protest that Wufei had the good sense to loosen his grip.

XXX

After leaving Quatre's bedroom, Trowa wandered the hall aimlessly. He was carrying out an internal debate with himself, not that anyone could have been able to tell from his expressionless face. Finally coming to a decision, Trowa abruptly turned left and made his way towards Duo's bedroom door. He knocked on the door twice and waited.

"Come in." He heard Duo call in a subdued voice.

Trowa frowned. Duo was never subdued. He should never be subdued. Duo provided the cheer and humour that their group of alternately angry, cold, and determined group of pilots desperately needed — the exception being Quatre, of course, though he too also needed Duo's joyfulness from time to time.

Pushing the door open, he quietly entered and saw Duo sitting silently on the bed. Duo lifted his head when Trowa entered.

Standing at the doorway, Trowa carefully took in Duo's appearance. His eyes were red rimmed and his hair was mussed. //Did I do that to him?//

Trowa swallowed twice, the sound of the action audible in the silent room. He swallowed a third time and saw a small smile tug at the corner of Duo's mouth. That smile gave Trowa the courage to begin speaking. "I suppose I never realised that Wufei loved Quatre until I saw Wufei with him." He began.

He saw Duo watching him intently and continued to explain his thought processes. "Wufei loves Quatre to such an extent that his inclination to shun weakness has disappeared. And Quatre, Quatre loves Wufei so much that even with amnesia, Quatre is automatically, instinctively turns to Wufei. Wufei is the one he feels safest with."

Trowa took a deep breath and caught Duo's gaze. "I want to give you and myself the chance to find such love."

Duo gaped at him and then his lips curled up in a wide smile, eyes suddenly shining like the brightest stars. Standing up, he moved carefully towards Trowa. When Trowa didn't move away, Duo pulled the other pilot into a hug. "I'll make you happy." He promised fervently. "We'll find that love." And then he lifted his head and kissed Trowa deeply.

XXX

It wasn't until much later that the two emerged from the bedroom. They'd spent a lot of time talking and holding each other close. For the first time in weeks, Trowa felt light-hearted. It was as though a great weight had finally been lifted from his shoulders. They found Wufei, Quatre, and Heero sitting in the family room. Quatre was still clutching his brightly coloured book.

Wufei lifted his head when he heard them enter, and his eyes immediately and uncannily dropped to their clasped hands. Duo gave him a nervous grin before walking forward while still holding Trowa's hand. Reaching Quatre, he stopped and crouched in front of him.

"Q-bean." He said gently. Quatre lifted his head to look at Duo. Duo took a deep breath. "Trowa has accepted me as his boyfriend. Are you happy for us?"

There was a long moment of silence before Quatre gave Duo a cute grin. "Yes." Then he clapped in childish glee.

"Maxwell." Wufei growled, his voice low and deadly. "He doesn't know what you're asking him. How dare you?!"

Duo ignored him. "Do you know what a boyfriend is, Quatre?" He asked again.

Quatre stared at him and then leaned back into Wufei's embrace. "Wufei is my boyfriend." He declared. From somewhere in the room Heero snorted.

Duo looked at Wufei with a small grin. "I think he knows very well what I'm asking him."

Wufei merely looked troubled again. Heero spoke from where he was sitting. "Don't think too much, Chang."

Wufei gave a little sigh of resignation and just cuddled Quatre closer as though doing so could protect him from the inevitable hurts of the world.


	5. Chapter 5

Yes, I know I've been neglecting this story. Sorry. Busy life. That, and I've given up fanfictioning, so I rarely come back here anymore. Only to put up her stories.**  
**

**Chapter Five**

It was all very perplexing, but the pilots discovered that for some reason, now that Duo and Trowa were lovers, Quatre seemed less afraid of them. He'd even gone so far as to speak to them without clutching tightly to Wufei's hand. It seemed as though things were finally beginning to look up at last. Wufei hoped that this meant that Quatre was on his way to recovering from his injuries, physical and psychological.

It had now been three days since Duo had told Quatre that he and Trowa were boyfriends. Quatre hadn't and didn't appear at all disturbed by the news; instead he seemed to be happy for them on the one hand, and curious about their activities on the other.

"What are you doing?" Quatre piped up one day.

Immediately Duo and Trowa broke away from their lip lock. Quatre was standing beside them looking interested while Wufei was standing behind Quatre looking angry.

Trowa began to flush in embarrassment, but Duo took it all in stride and gave Quatre a cheerful grin. "This is what you do when you love someone. You kiss them." He told Quatre.

"Oh." Quatre nodded and looked thoughtful.

"Maxwell." Wufei snapped. "You shouldn't be doing that here where he can see you."

"Relax, Wuffers," Duo dismissed. "Quatre's a big boy now." And Duo flashed Quatre another grin.

Quatre smiled shyly back which made all three pilots freeze and stare at him in fascination. Then Quatre turned and tugged on Wufei's hand, somehow managing to manoeuvre him towards the couch. He waited until Wufei was sitting down before resuming his customary seat in Wufei's lap.

"Did you see that?" Trowa whispered, shocked. "He smiled at us."

Duo sounded just as awed when he replied hoarsely. "Yeah." He turned to look at Wufei sitting on the couch and found Wufei staring at Quatre in utter delight. Looking up, Wufei met Duo's gaze, and he smiled at him. Duo grinned back and gave him the thumbs up. It was amazing how that one simple smile Quatre had gifted Duo and Trowa with meant so much to the three pilots.

Quatre had only just settled back comfortably into Wufei's lap when he started moving again. Squirming, he shifted until he'd turned around and was facing Wufei. Wrapping his arms around Wufei's neck, he said solemnly, "I love you."

Wufei nodded and stroked his hair. "Why don't you watch TV?" He offered. No matter how many times Quatre told him he loved him, Wufei never said the three words back.

Quatre ignored the suggestion and said again. "I love you." And then moving quickly, he reached up and attempted to kiss Wufei.

Wufei barely managed to pull away to avoid the kiss.

"Quatre." He said gently, trying to hold the blonde away from him. "Don't do that." Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Trowa and Duo watching the two of them with some amusement.

"In the future, Maxwell," Wufei growled. "Keep your activities confined to the bedroom, where they belong."

Duo snickered. "What do you think he'd do if he saw us making love?"

Wufei flushed a light pink and turned back to the blonde in his arms still trying to kiss him. "Quatre." He sighed, clamping Quatre's hands down to his side. "Your favourite show is on. Look, there's Naruto."

Quatre ignored the TV.

"Kiss me." He demanded, lifting his face up for a kiss.

"Watch TV." Wufei refused sternly.

Quatre's eyes began to fill with tears, and his bottom lip began trembling.

"Oh, why don't you kiss him already, 'Fei?" Duo suggested from where he was sitting.

Wufei looked at Quatre sternly, but he had trouble remaining angry when Quatre was looking so unhappy.

"Quatre." He murmured gently and then leaned down and gave Quatre a soft kiss on his cheek.

Quatre stopped crying. "The other side?" He asked hopefully.

Wufei bent down to kiss his other cheek. At the last moment, Quatre turned his head and by shifting slightly managed to attach his mouth to Wufei's. When Wufei's arms went slack in surprise, he tugged his own arms free and wrapped them around Wufei's neck in a death grip.

By the time Wufei managed to break free, Quatre had managed to kiss him quite soundly.

"Quatre always was a good tactician." Trowa remarked fondly, watching as Wufei flushed red and Quatre leaned back into him, comfortably settling down to watch Naruto. He seemed quite pleased with himself.

Wufei determinedly ignored the others who were having a chuckle at his expense and decided that he wouldn't give Quatre another chance to trick him.

XXX

Since having received his very first kiss from Wufei, Quatre seemed determined to get another. It appeared to the pilots that Quatre had taken a liking to the whole kissing thing.

The first time Heero had seen Quatre attempting to kiss Wufei (by lunging at the other pilot while he was reading to Quatre), Heero had snorted and had to turn his face away to keep Wufei from seeing the smirk of slightly malicious laughter on his face. Now, all of the pilots kept an eye out to see whether Quatre would manage to steal another kiss. He'd made several unsuccessful attempts at getting himself one, but no amount of crying, tantrum-throwing, or trickery had gotten him another kiss so far.

To say Duo, Trowa, and Heero watched the whole saga with barely concealed amusement was an understatement. The only person who wasn't amused was Wufei. He didn't want to take advantage of Quatre while he was so obviously vulnerable and not in his right mind.

"I think it's really the other way around." Duo pointed out. "Quatre's trying to take advantage of you." Wufei ignored his comment with practiced ease. Quatre had amnesia; he didn't know what he was doing.

Perhaps Quatre's unsuccessful attempts to kiss Wufei were making the pilots feel more light-hearted, or perhaps it was the fact that Quatre was apparently getting better, but the atmosphere around the safe house was no longer as gloomy as it once was.

Wufei regarded Quatre fondly. He'd discovered that he could now leave the room for a few minutes without Quatre becoming hysterical. Though, of course, if he left Quatre's side for more than five minutes, Quatre would once again become frightened. Still, all of the pilots agreed that Quatre was making progress, slowly but surely.

XXX

"Mm." Wufei murmured one night as he sleepily opened his mouth and allowed the warm tongue to slip in. Reaching up, he buried his hand into silky locks and pulled the body down on top of him, shifting his hips to grind his hard-on into the body above him.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open, and he pushed away from the slender body resting on top of his, sending Quatre backwards.

Sitting up quickly, he focused hard in the darkness and was able to make out Quatre who was now sitting beside him looking like he'd just been thoroughly kissed, which, Wufei thought grumpily, he'd just been.

"Quatre." He intoned slowly. "I thought I told you to go to sleep."

Quatre gave him a happy smile. "I like your kisses, Wufei."

Wufei began to growl. Shifting, he pointed to a spot beside him on the bed. "Go to sleep, now!"

Quatre grinned at him. "Give me another kiss?"

"No." Wufei barked. "Bed, now!"

Muttering and mumbling, Quatre slid back under the blankets and allowed Wufei to tuck them around him.

"Close your eyes." Wufei ordered. Reluctantly, Quatre closed his eyes but not before making sure he had a tight grip on Wufei. Rolling over, he made another attempt to kiss Wufei, but Wufei was ready for him holding him down.

"Sleep." Wufei barked.

With a gusty sigh of frustration, Quatre closed his eyes.

Wufei waited until Quatre had fallen asleep before he dared to relax his guard. This was all Duo and Trowa's fault. If they hadn't been kissing where Quatre could see them, then Wufei wouldn't have such a hard time of it now. Shit. A hard time literally. He was still aroused from that one brief kiss they'd shared while he thought he had been dreaming. Closing his eyes, he tried to go back to sleep.

XXX

Quatre's internal clock woke him bright and early at five o'clock the next morning. Lifting his head, he wondered why he'd woken so early. Normally he didn't wake up until Wufei called him to get up.

//That's right.// He thought to himself. //I want to kiss Wufei.//

Turning his head, he saw Wufei stretched out beside him, still asleep.

There were a few things he wanted to do with Wufei, like kiss him and touch him. He'd seen Duo and Trowa touching each other. Duo had explained that you also did that when you loved someone. And Quatre most definitely loved Wufei. Not that Quatre would tell Wufei what he'd seen. Wufei hadn't been pleased to see Duo and Trowa kissing. Qutare wondered what he'd say if he knew that Quatre had seen them touching each other.

He knew Wufei wanted him. He'd felt it last night when Wufei had kissed him and then pushed up into him. He coloured red at that memory and felt himself begin to stir. It was a good thing Duo had explained it to him, or he'd be thinking there was something wrong with himself. Duo and Trowa weren't bad people. He absently wondered why he'd been so afraid of them at the beginning. He supposed it was because they'd wanted so much from him at the beginning, but now they weren't so demanding. Now that they didn't seem to always want something from him, he wasn't so afraid. Wufei had wanted things from him, too, trying to make him be friends with everyone, but he'd felt safe with Wufei, so he hadn't minded. Besides, Wufei would never ask anything of him that would hurt him. Wufei would never, ever hurt him.

He shifted slightly and pressed himself against Wufei's thigh. Little shocks ran through him at the contact. No wonder Duo and Trowa liked touching each other so much. Shifting around on the bed, he wrapped his arms around Wufei's neck and pressed his mouth against Wufei's mouth. It felt so good, why wouldn't Wufei touch him?

His mouth moved more demandingly against Wufei's, and he rubbed himself more insistently against Wufei's thigh. He felt Wufei jerk awake, and, seizing the opportunity when Wufei's lips parted in shock, he quickly slid his tongue in, rocking almost frantically against Wufei's thigh now.

"Mff." Wufei muttered under him, hands moving to pull Quatre's arms away, but Quatre held on even tighter, grinding almost relentlessly against Wufei's thigh and sliding his tongue slickly around in Wufei's mouth.

He clung frantically to Wufei, but he wasn't getting what he needed. He felt Wufei trying to push him off. Suddenly he gave a little cry of frustration and pulled back.

He saw Wufei staring at him in shock, but he turned away to scrub the tears from his eyes. He couldn't understand it. It wasn't enough. He suddenly felt helpless and hopeless and lost.

"Quatre." He heard Wufei murmur, but he pushed the comforting hand away. Wufei didn't want him. Not the way Duo wanted Trowa, or the way Trowa wanted Duo.

He looked at Wufei. Wufei was frowning. Quatre tried not to let the tears fall as a thought hit him with the force of a thunderbolt. Duo never had to push Trowa away. Quatre had been forcing himself onto Wufei all this time. //You're so stupid.// He berated himself.

"Quatre." He heard Wufei murmur again before he found himself being pulled into a tight embrace. Quatre turned his head away, ashamed. If Wufei wanted him, then he wouldn't have to wake up early just to steal a kiss. Lost deeply in his thoughts and self-recriminations, he nearly jumped when he felt a hand settle on his stomach.

"I've been a bit of a fool, haven't I?" Wufei murmured a trifle humorously, even as his hand slid lower. "Is this what you want?" And then his hand slid into Quatre's pajamas and closed around his length. Quatre gasped sharply and let out a cry of shocked delight.

"That's it." Wufei murmured huskily as his nose nuzzled the back of Quatre's ear. "Let me hear you."

Quatre gave a little moan when Wufei's hand slid down to the base of his cock and squeezed. Wufei loosened his hand a bit as he slid his hand back up to the tip, but then his grip tightened again as he slid his hand back down to the base. When he reached the head once more, he swirled his finger on it in a rapid circular motion which made Quatre squirm erotically in his arms.

"Wufei?" He cried feverishly, frantic hands clutching at Wufei's legs which were on either side of him.

"It's okay." Wufei murmured in a low and heated voice. "Just enjoy it."

Quatre closed his eyes in bliss and leaned back helplessly into Wufei as Wufei continued his ministrations. He felt Wufei's hand stroking him and knew that he wanted more. Twisting his head slightly to one side, he leaned up to steal a kiss. To his surprise, Wufei's mouth descended quite willingly on his own, and within moments he found himself sucking on that invading tongue. Wufei's tongue brushed wetly against his own, exploring his mouth sensuously, and he clung even more tightly to the other boy as he felt the hand on him tighten.

"Mmm." He moaned against Wufei's mouth as he felt something coiling deep within him. Wufei's hand moved faster along his length, and he felt the pressure increasing. Then the sensations were overwhelming him, and with a little cry he pressed his mouth even harder against Wufei's and dug his fingernails into Wufei's shoulders as warmth rushed through him. He felt Wufei continue to stroke him until his convulsions had died down.

Quatre reluctantly freed Wufei's mouth when he felt Wufei's hand sliding out of his pyjamas.

"Better?" Wufei asked huskily, eyes glinting.

Quatre nodded lethargically, giving a small smile of contentment then he reached for Wufei, just like he'd seen Trowa do. He suddenly found his hand caught in a tight grip. Confused, he looked at Wufei.

"It's still early." Wufei murmured to him. "Get some sleep, okay?"

"But I…" Quatre began hesitantly.

Wufei gave him a little smile and kissed him quite thoroughly. "Sleep."

Quatre broke out in a grin once his mouth was released. "Okay."

He allowed Wufei to settle him back into bed, and, burying his face into Wufei's chest, he allowed himself to fall asleep. He was feeling really sleepy for some reason.

Watching Quatre sleep, Wufei frowned thoughtfully. Just because Quatre was amnesic and acted like a child, Wufei had temporarily forgotten that he still had physical desires too. After all, they were all still teenage boys, terrorists and assassins though they may be. He'd been surprised to find Quatre on top of him this morning, kissing him quite insistently. What had shocked him most though was the fact that Quatre had been rubbing his hard on against Wufei's thigh. Wufei did try to stop him, but when Quatre had pulled back and Wufei had seen him scrubbing at his eyes, obviously confused and still hard, he'd realised his error. Quatre obviously needed sexual relief and hadn't known what to do. So Wufei had helped him.

When Quatre had reached for him though, he'd immediately stopped him. It was true, he wanted to feel those hands on him, but Quatre still didn't understand enough yet. Wufei had no intention of taking advantage of him. If Quatre wanted sexual relief, then Wufei was going to give it to him, but he was not going to take something from Quatre that he wasn't giving freely. Actually, Wufei amended, because of his amnesia Quatre was giving it freely, but what Wufei meant was that he didn't want to take from Quatre something that wouldn't have been offered in a normal situation.

Damnit, but things were just getting too complicated.

XXX

When Quatre woke up two hours later, he pulled Wufei to him for another kiss. To his delight, Wufei returned the kiss. Shifting, he rolled on top of Wufei, wanting desperately to feel what he had that morning. Wufei slid a thigh between his legs and shifted his hand to Quatre's hips, guiding Quatre's movements so that he was rubbing himself against Wufei's thigh.

"That's it." Wufei murmured heatedly, watching intently as Quatre rode his thigh. Quatre moaned and shook as he rocked back and forth, the pace quickly picking up. Eventually, he gave a sharp cry and threw back his head, pressing down frantically on Wufei's thigh. Then he leaned down so that his mouth could desperately search out Wufei's. A few moments later, Quatre was coming in a shuddering stream of physical pleasure, his moans swallowed by Wufei's mouth. When it was finally over, Quatre sank breathlessly down onto Wufei. Wufei shifted so that Quatre was stretched out on the bed. They lay together quietly for several moments while Quatre's breathing eventually calmed down. "Are you going to get up, sleepyhead?" He teased.

Quatre looked confused. "You – " he paused, not really sure what he wanted to say.

"What is it?" Wufei asked him.

Quatre reached for him. Once again like before, Wufei caught his hands. Smiling gently at Quatre, Wufei kissed Quatre's hands. "Get up lazy bones." He teased, pulling Quatre from the bed.

Quatre was confused. Perhaps he'd been mistaken. Perhaps this was how it worked. After all, he hadn't seen Duo and Trowa do what Wufei and he'd done this morning, and Wufei seemed to know what he was doing.

"Are you happy?" He questioned tentatively.

Wufei smiled at him. "Very." He murmured before leading Quatre to the bathroom.

//That was all right then.// Quatre decided. //As long as Wufei is happy.//

XXX

To say that Quatre passed the next few days in a blissful haze was an understatement. Every night Wufei brought him to dizzying heights of pleasure using his hands and mouth. The first time Wufei had leaned down to take him in his mouth, he'd been shocked, but Wufei had smiled at him reassuringly, and so he'd settled back without a word.

When he'd felt himself being drawn into that slick, wet heat, he'd nearly collapsed. It had only taken minutes for the warm, wet pressure of Wufei's mouth to build up an intense passion coiling in his stomach, and when he'd felt Wufei's tongue curl around him he'd breathlessly allowed himself fly to the stars. He had never been so happy in his life. He wasn't sure how it worked, but somehow Wufei seemed to get the same pleasure he did. At least, Wufei always told him he was happy, and Quatre believed him.

He supposed that Duo and Trowa did it differently. He wasn't about to ask Wufei any questions on the matter; he knew Wufei would have a fit.

"Hmm." Sighing in bliss, Quatre settled back against the bed. Wufei had used his mouth on him again.

"Sleep, okay?" Wufei murmured, tucking the blankets around him. Quatre rolled over so that his face was buried in Wufei's neck. "Okay." He affirmed happily. Still, sometimes he wished Wufei would let him touch him.


	6. Chapter 6

**_Last chapter, y'all._  
**

**Chapter Six:**

The next morning, when Quatre and Wufei eventually made their way down to the kitchen, they discovered that a mission had arrived during the night when all of the occupants of the safe house were in bed.

Wufei frowned as he examined the mission outline currently open on Heero's laptop. "I thought that you had informed the doctors that Quatre has amnesia." Wufei eventually remarked in some confusion.

"I did." Heero grunted. "Nevertheless, the mission clearly requires Quatre's participation."

"Look at him." Wufei gestured sharply to Quatre. "He can't pilot in this state!"

"We have no choice." Heero snapped back, obviously irritated.

"This is not going to work, Heero." Trowa interrupted calmly. "For one thing, Quatre can't remember anything, and for another, he gets distressed when he's away from Wufei for more than five minutes. Do you really expect him to be able to pilot his Gundam under these circumstances?"

Heero looked thoughtful. "Let's just see if Winner can still pilot his Gundam first, then we'll worry about separating him from Chang."

Quatre watched, blissfully oblivious to the stakes of the conversation as the pilots continued their heated discussion; he kept his eyes glued to Wufei's face. He liked to watch Wufei talk. He especially liked the way Wufei's eyes sparkled with an intense heat as he gestured wildly with his hands. In fact, seeing Wufei's eyes like that reminded Quatre of the only other time he ever saw those eyes at that level of intensity. He blushed. In the bedroom – only in the bedroom – did Quatre ever see Wufei's eyes so intense. He wondered when Wufei was going to be finished and whether he'd be able to drag Wufei somewhere private. His eyes glazed over in rising arousal as he thought about all of the lovely ways Wufei could make his body tremble.

In the silence that fell, he suddenly realised that everyone was staring at him. Duo and Trowa looked slightly bemused at his inattention and inexplicably – to them, at least –glazed expression while Wufei was blushing furiously.

"Come on." Wufei muttered, holding out his hand considerately to Quatre and yet carefully not looking at him. Quatre delightedly latched onto Wufei, and off to his right he heard Duo chuckle in amusement. He happily wondered if they were going to go somewhere private now. To his disappointment, Wufei led him outside towards a large shed he'd always noticed but had never entered. They paused in front of the large doors, and he wondered what they were doing here.

Heero pushed the doors, and they swung open. As soon as Quatre's eyes settled on the objects revealed behind the door, he froze and stared, his eyes rounding in amazement. There in front of him were five magnificent mechanical figures, standing in a row. They stood straight and tall, somehow making Quatre think of freedom and integrity. He stared, awed at the sight; he'd never seen anything so incredible.

"These are Gundams," Trowa explained to him, breaking the silence that had fallen over the pilots. Quatre was understandably shocked, while the others were carefully observing his reaction. Quatre nodded absently, his eyes still fixed on the huge mechanical figures. Something stirred at the back of Quatre's mind. There was something familiar about the figures. His eyes seemed particularly drawn towards the Gundam in the far left-hand corner of the large space.

"Which one do you… like?" Heero asked him carefully.

Quatre walked instinctively towards the Gundam in the left-hand corner of the shed; something was inexplicably directing him towards it. He paused in front of the Gundam and stared up at it, even more amazed than before. Up this close, it was even bigger than he'd first thought.

"That's Sandrock." Wufei informed him quietly.

"Sandrock." Quatre tried out the name.

"That's your Gundam." Heero said.

"Mine?" Quatre asked quizzically, confused.

"Yes." Heero replied. He grunted in satisfaction. "The fact that you chose this one is a positive sign."

"Dammit, Yuy!" Wufei snapped. "Just because he chose this one doesn't mean that he'll be able to pilot it."

Heero ignored the outburst. "Take him up." He commanded.

Wufei looked angry.

"Wufei." Trowa murmured in a placating manner. Wufei glanced at him, still visibly annoyed, not placated at all.

Trowa returned his expression of irritation with one of characteristic unperturbed calm. "I don't want to do this, either, but as the current situation stands, we have no choice." Trowa sounded almost apologetic.

Wufei sighed and nodded in grudging acquiescence, knowing reason when he heard it. "Fine." He muttered.

He walked towards Sandrock's ankle, and, once he'd reached it, he turned to Quatre and gestured to him. "Come here."

Quatre obediently walked over to Wufei.

"See this button?" Wufei asked, pointing at a button on Sandrock's ankle. "Push it."

Quatre pushed the button. He let out a startled sound when a cord descended from above him and stopped in front of them. Wufei slid one foot into the loop conveniently at the end of the cord and grabbed hold of the handle before wrapping an arm around Quatre's waist. Quatre let out a shocked squeak when they both rose into the air. He stared around him, amazed yet again, and he clung tightly to Wufei as the other pilots grew steadily smaller below them as they climbed upward.

Wufei pushed Quatre towards the cockpit first before following him in. Behind him, the cord once again lowered to the ground, and the other pilots grabbed hold of it.

Quatre stared around in awe at the little compartment. "What's this?" He asked, cocking his head to one side, obviously still confused.

"This is the cockpit." Wufei told him patiently. "Sit down here." And he pushed Quatre into the command chair. Behind him, he felt eyes focused intently on him as the other pilots observed him from their various positions on Sandrock's body.

Wufei leaned over and buckled Quatre up. "How do you feel?" He questioned gently.

Quatre looked around. There was something strange about sitting here like this. He could feel a sense of strange familiarity, a nagging at the back of his mind trying to tell him something, but it remained elusive, and he could not make it out no matter how hard he concentrated on it. Still, he was beginning to feel a sense of rightness wash over him.

"Can you remember how to pilot?" Heero asked bluntly him from Sandrock's shoulder.

"Pilot?" Quatre repeated, confused. "Fly this?" They wanted him to fly this?

He stared at all of the buttons in the little room. He couldn't fly this! Why were they asking him to do something he couldn't do?

He shook his head slowly. "No." He told them a bit sadly.

Wufei turned away from him and looked at Heero with some annoyance. "I told you he wouldn't be able to do it!" He sounded exasperated, and his voice was tinged with something else: disappointment, irritation?

Quatre stared at Wufei's back, feeling an odd pain in his heart. Was he really so useless? Unbidden, something flashed in his mind, a fragmented vision of something. A memory? He closed his eyes to concentrate more deeply, and the image became clearer.

That was Wufei's voice, speaking in a condescending tone that Quatre had never heard from him before – at least, he'd never heard that particular tone since his amnesia.

Quatre sat there in the chair with his eyes closed, feeling like he was almost breathing in the memory; it was that real in his mind. Although Quatre didn't understand the memory, having lost the context due to the fragmented quality of his remembering, he felt rage welling up from somewhere deep inside him. Without consciously thinking about his next actions, his mouth firmed into a line and before he knew what he was doing, his fingers were flying over the keys. He felt strange inside, like he remembered that he had to do something very important, like he had to prove himself badly. I've done it once, I'll do it again. He didn't know why he was thinking such thoughts, but he'd show Wufei that he wasn't useless.

Wufei jerked in surprise as the screens began to light up, and then he grabbed onto the cockpit opening to stop himself from hurling down to the ground when Sandrock took a step forward. He noted that the other pilots were all holding on tightly too, in response to the sudden lurching movement from the hithertofore quiet Gundam. The cockpit door closed, and Wufei hastened over to the command chair where he held on tightly to the back of it, vaguely wondering about the fate of the other pilots as he tried to first deal with his own shock at the unexpected turn of events.

Quatre shifted in the seat, his eyes intense and focused, and then his hands – Sandrock's hands – began to move. He plucked Heero from his perch on Sandrock's shoulder with one hand, and in his other gathered Duo and Trowa from where they were standing on Sandrock's wrist. Then, still holding them, he began to run towards the hanger doors. Once outside, in a single leap, he took off high into the air.

Wufei didn't make a sound.

Quatre lost himself in the exhilarating feeling of flying higher into the air. A small part of his mind registered an important piece of trivia which he hadn't consciously known. //Don't fly too high, or the others won't be able to breathe.//

Quatre dropped out of his upward climb and plummeted towards the ground, twirling and twisting and turning in the air. Hurtling at a speed faster than sound, he fell rapidly towards the ground. Before they made impact with the earth, which was growing closer at an alarming rate, Quatre pulled out of his sharp dive and landed neatly on his feet in front of the hanger doors where he put the pilots still being held in Sandrock's gentle grip on the ground. Quatre sighed once in satisfaction. Then he turned to look eagerly at Wufei for his reaction.

Wufei was staring at him with an odd expression on his face. "Let's go." Wufei finally said, abruptly turning away.

Outside all of the pilots looked at each other. Duo was bouncing around, visibly exhilarated. "Did you see that, Wuffers? Did you? I think you remember that move. That was the only time I've ever seen Q play chicken with you. For that matter, that was the only time I've ever seen Q-ball play chicken with anyone! Remember? He picked you up in his hand and hurled towards the ground. You were so white afterwards. That was when you realised that no matter how innocent Q-bear may look, he's a damn good pilot."

"I remember." Wufei answered through gritted teeth, obviously not enjoying the memory.

"It was great!" Duo enthused, ignoring the grumpy pilot next to him. "I knew he'd be able to do it again. It's even better to experience it held in his hand than watching it from the ground!"

Wufei just 'humphed'. "Idiot." He muttered deprecatingly to Duo.

All of the pilots finally turned to look at Quatre who'd thus far remained silent. He was staring at his hands in some fascinated bewilderment, but then he looked at Wufei when an expectant silence fell. "Wufei?" He questioned hesitantly.

Wufei stared at him for a long time. "You're a good pilot." He eventually acknowledged gently. Quatre broke into a delighted grin, beaming good will to all.

"What about the separation problem?" Trowa murmured soflty.

"I've thought of that." Heero replied. "We'll leave a comm. window open between Chang and Winner's Gundams at all times."

He walked towards Quatre. "Will you be able to help us? We need you as backup. Will you fight with us?"

Quatre stared. Everyone was looking at him. He looked to Wufei. Wufei was frowning and staring at the ground. Quatre hesitated. He didn't really understand what he was being asked to do, but it seemed to be something that Wufei was against. He didn't know what to say.

"Chang!" Heero snapped when it became obvious that Quatre's refusal or acquiescence was dependent on him.

Wufei glared angrily at Heero, visibly unwilling to risk any danger to Quatre.

"Let's put it like this." Duo intervened reasonably. "If we don't get the extra backup, none of us might make it back, and so even if we leave Quatre here at the safe house, he wouldn't be able to fend for himself. He'd be dead within the week anyway."

Wufei sighed in defeat at this undeniable logic and then looked at Quatre. "We need your help." He told him, still hating the idea of an amnesic Quatre in battle.

Quatre broke into another wide grin. "Yeah! I'm going to be fighting with Wufei!"

Then he skipped into the house. The other pilots stared in the direction of the departed pilot, shocked. "He forgot about Wufei." Duo finally murmured dazedly after two minutes. Wufei ignored him and stalked into the house, too.

XXX

Quatre closed the bedroom door behind him, and the smile slipped from his face. Putting one hand to his face, he rubbed at it tiredly. He'd had fun piloting the Gundam, but now his head was hurting. Something kept niggling at the back of his mind, something that felt painful kept pushing to the front of his mind, and that was why he'd returned to the house first. He wanted some time alone. He paced restlessly in his bedroom. What was it that was bothering him? His eyes fell on the chest of drawers; he walked slowly towards it, compelled by some unknown force. Crouching down, he opened the last drawer and looked in. It was filled with socks. Frowning in thought, he closed his eyes slowly. Reaching his hand in, he was surprised to feel it connect with something hidden at the very back under all of his socks. He pulled the object out and stared at the picture in his hand. It was a photograph of a man standing surrounded by twenty-nine girls and one boy. Quatre scrutinized the picture more thoroughly. The boy was him. He stared at each of the girls in turn, feeling the strange sensation gripping his heart increase in intensity. His eyes moved around the photograph some more and landed on the man. His heart rate tripled. The man had cold, hard eyes. Quatre stared, mesmerized, feeling fear begin to course through him. He dropped the picture and grasped his head in his hand. "Hurts." He moaned in anguish. "It hurts." He couldn't understand it. There was something about the man, something that frightened him.

"Quatre." He heard Wufei call. Immediately, he replaced the picture beneath the socks and tossed himself onto the bed just before the bedroom door opened. He felt strange. He didn't know why he didn't want Wufei to know about his head hurting, but he didn't.

"How are you feeling?" Wufei asked in concern upon entering the room. Quatre stared at him. Wufei always made him feel safe. Without giving it another thought, he launched himself into Wufei's arms and cuddled into his chest.

"Quatre?" Wufei exclaimed worriedly as he picked Quatre up and sat down onto the bed with Quatre in his arms. "Are you sure you want to pilot? If it's too much…"

Quatre looked up from Wufei's chest and nodded his head vigorously. "I want to." And that was the truth. Quatre really did want to. He'd felt like he was flying free when he was piloting. It was a freedom he was keen to experience again.

"What is this then?" Wufei asked him, still looking worried.

Quatre stared up at him. Wufei wanted answers, and Quatre wasn't sure he could answer him, so he distracted him instead. "Kiss me, Wufei."

XXX

The time for the mission had finally arrived, and Wufei was still concerned. Quatre had been strangely quiet. Wufei wondered what was going through his mind. Every time he'd tried to ask, Quatre had changed the subject or distracted him by kissing him. Wufei was suspicious, and rightly so.

The five Gundams were in position standing hidden in some trees overlooking the base. At the safe house, they'd all discussed their roles in the mission. Heero and Wufei were going to go in and destroy the central control tower. If they managed to take that one out, then the newer dolls controlled by its frequencies would be rendered useless. It was Duo, Trowa, and Quatre's job to back them up. Wufei was worried about Quatre. He was amnesic for Nataku's sake! He shouldn't even be at the battlefield, but even Wufei was smart enough to realise that they didn't have a choice in the matter. Under the circumstances, they needed all five pilots.

"Chang." Heero's face appeared on the screen.

"Ready." He replied.

"Let's go." Heero said and charged towards the base with Wufei hot on his heels.

Immediately, dolls flocked from positions unknown, and the base, which seconds ago had appeared deserted, was suddenly filled with gunfire.

Wufei and Heero charged their way through the dolls, slashing frantically with their weapons. Their main priority was the tower; the others would have to take care of everything else.

XXX

It was ten minutes into the battle. Quatre shook sweat from his eyes. With every doll he cut down, the tight feeling in his chest grew, and the pounding at his temples increased. He ignored it all. His job was to provide backup to make sure that Wufei wasn't hurt. Okay, focus on Wufei and Heero. He shook his head wildly again as he cut down another doll, and the pounding in his head steadily worsened. Still, he wouldn't let that affect him, not when Wufei's life was on the line. "What's happening to me?" He whispered fearfully even as he cut down another doll.

He lost sight of the others as the broken dolls continued to pile up around him. His only consolation was the image of Wufei on his left screen. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Wufei's intense eyes blazing as he manoeuvred his controls. Quatre wondered if he'd reached the tower yet.

"Look out." Duo's face suddenly flashed up on his screen. Huh? Quatre thought as he cut yet another doll in front of him. His answer was in his being slammed forward to the ground and then jerked back as he suddenly found Sandrock being held down by all four limbs.

Quatre could feel his breath begin to quicken into erratic gasps. This position was making coils of fear wash through him. It seemed agonizingly familiar, but Quatre couldn't fathom why. All he knew was that his heart was beginning to pound overtime, and the pressure in his head was growing unbearable.

"No!" He threw back his head and screamed as the bands tightening around his head increased tenfold in strength. "What's happening?!" He cried in bewilderment, frightened.

Dimly, he heard voices, but he ignored them. Images were washing through his mind, images of their last battle, of his being taken from his cockpit and squeezed, of his flying through the air, then older scenes were taking its place, other battles, scenes of his watching Wufei surreptitiously, a particular scene stood out of his contemplating his feelings for Wufei under the apple tree, then yet older scenes were flashing by, scenes of his being locked into a room, his father whipping him, his sisters trying to protect him. It was merely seconds of flashback, but to Quatre the time taken in remembering seemed as though he was reliving his life all over again.

He remembered. He remembered everything!

I'd tried to block out those painful memories with obviously disastrous results. Quatre thought, giving a bitter laugh.

The dolls had him in the air and were swinging him now, but Quatre never noticed, he was too lost in the pain of reliving his past.

//But they are only memories!// He thought angrily. //They don't have the power to hurt me anymore.//

"You're nothing!" He roared as Sandrock was thrown through the air and imbedded head-first into the cliff face before toppling to the ground.

All around the battle field, everything suddenly stopped. It was so quiet that it was possible to hear the wind blowing, and then suddenly, a ball of flame became visible to the east of the base.

"Quatre!" Trowa yelled as the reason for the dolls' immobility became apparent and broke him from his stunned stupor. For a moment, he'd believed that the dolls had stopped because Quatre had been killed. No! He shook his head in denial, quickly manoeuvring his keys. Quatre isn't dead!

As one, all of the pilots rushed toward Sandrock. Trowa, being closest, got there first, but Wufei, Heero, and Duo were not far behind. They watched as Sandrock's cockpit door opened, and Quatre staggered out. He stared at the person in front of him and gave a little smile. "Trowa." He murmured in obvious recognition before he lost consciousness.

Everyone stared. "It looked like he recognised you." Duo noted shakily. "Really recognised you."

Trowa didn't reply; he just leaned down and lifted Quatre up into his arms. "Let's just get him back to the safe house." Trowa said.

XXX

Back at the safe house, Quatre was lying in bed pale and white, the gash on his head had been expertly bandaged, and as the pilots sat and watched they could feel a sense of dÃ©jÃ vu ghosting over their skin.

Finally, after half an hour had passed since they'd returned to the safe house, Quatre began to move. First his fingers began to curl slightly, and as the other pilots watched with bated breath, Quatre's eyelids fluttered next. It was another minute before they opened completely. The other five pilots stood at the end of his bed staring at him; no one knew who should approach him. Wufei hung back and Trowa stared.

"Are you okay, Quatre?" Duo eventually asked when it became apparent that no one was going to speak.

"Yes." Quatre replied and then there was more silence.

Duo asked the question everyone was wondering. "Do you remember anything?"

Quatre nodded. "I remember everything."

The air itself seemed to freeze into absolute stillness at his admission. Now that Quatre had his memory back, everyone wondered what was going to happen. Duo felt his heart clench in anticipated heartbreak and wondered if Quatre wanted Trowa back. If that was the case, Duo wasn't sure he had the right to fight for him even though he knew that it would crush his heart to have to give Trowa up.

Quatre offered Duo a soft smile. "I remember everything, Duo. That means I remember everything that happened including these past few weeks." He looked at Trowa and then back to Duo. "I'm happy for you both." They remained silent though there was a lessening of the tension in the room.

"Quatre." Trowa said quietly.

Quatre gave him a gentle smile and gestured to Duo. "Do you love him?"

Trowa nodded almost immediately. Quatre gave him another smile. "Then it is as it should be."

Trowa nodded gratefully.

Then Quatre turned to look at Wufei. They stared at each other, neither one speaking. The other pilots tactfully melted from the room realising that they could speak to Quatre later. There were many questions they wanted to ask him, but they were astute enough to realise that the questions could wait. Duo, the last one out, closed Quatre's bedroom door behind him.

"I'm sorry, Wufei." Quatre murmured once the two were alone in the bedroom. "I didn't mean to cause you so much trouble."

Wufei stared at him for a long time before finally speaking. "Just answer one question. Do you still love me?"

Quatre swallowed hard and nodded shakily. "Getting my memory back hasn't changed that." Then he bravely asked a question of his own. "Was it just pity on your behalf?"

Wufei shook his head in immediate denial.

Quatre smiled and held out his arms. Wufei walked forward and tugged him close. "I'm glad." Quatre whispered thankfully, feeling tears of happiness well up as he buried his face into Wufei's chest. "I don't think I could bear it if you only felt pity for me."

"If it had only been pity," Wufei murmured dryly, "I don't think I'd have done half the things I did with you."

He heard Quatre giggle into his chest.

"We'll have to talk about everything that's passed." Wufei said sternly. "I want to find out everything about you. It seems as though we don't know all that much about pilot 04 at all."

Quatre nodded. "Okay." He said agreeably, lifting his head. "I want to tell you. I don't think it's good keeping everything inside."

Wufei nodded gravely, looking completely serious.

"But first – " Quatre drawled, suddenly looking impish, and then he was moving quickly, surprising for someone who'd just been lying unconscious a few minutes previous. Before Wufei even registered his intentions, Quatre had given Wufei a forceful kiss.

Wufei was shocked for all of ten seconds, and then his body was responding, his hands lifting to bury themselves in Quatre's hair, mindful of his bandage while his mouth melted under Quatre's. Their tongues engaged in a vigorous battle, and all Wufei could feel was Quatre's heat burning him through his clothes. Suddenly, Wufei was desperate for more, but just as he was about to deepen the kiss even further, Quatre pulled back with a little growl. "You were tricking me." Quatre accused Wufei.

"Huh?" Wufei uttered in confusion, lifting dazed eyes to stare at Quatre as his lust-filled mind struggled to process that sentence syllable by syllable.

"At night." Quatre ground out. "When you wouldn't let me touch you, you were lying to me. You weren't getting pleasure." His hands reached for Wufei. Wufei grabbed them and stopped him.

"I was getting pleasure." Wufei refuted, staring hard into Quatre's eyes. "I enjoyed watching you reach the heights of pleasure."

"That's not what I meant." Quatre countered.

"You didn't know what you were asking me for." Wufei replied simply.

Quatre stared at the hands holding his. "I did."

Wufei shook his head.

Quatre sighed, exasperated. "Will you believe me if I told you that I do now?"

Wufei stared and then released Quatre's hands. Quatre reached for him, resting one hand delicately on Wufei. "I take it that's a yes?" He murmured slyly.

"Hm." Wufei hummed in return as he gave Quatre a gentle kiss.

"I plan on making it up to you tenfold." Quatre purred into the kiss.

He felt the cock in his hand leap at those words and smirked.

//Nataku!// Wufei thought desperately as Quatre then began to palm him earnestly through his pants. Maybe it had been better when Quatre was still innocent; he wasn't so damn devious then.

Wufei choked and his breath stuttered in his throat as he felt hot lips latch onto his throat and a heavy weight pushing him backwards onto the bed.

//Dammit!// he thought as he struggled to breathe around the pleasure. He wasn't sure if he was prepared to be bottom. All of the times he'd fantasized about Quatre, he'd imagined himself on top. Granted, Quatre's erotically-charged promise had stirred his blood… the thought trailed off as in one quick movement Quatre tugged his shirt from his body.

"Q-Quatre." His breath stuttered from his body.

"Don't worry." Quatre soothed.

And hearing that, Wufei's mind closed down; he trusted Quatre with his life.

He felt a palm skimming over his ribs, and he tossed his head back in a shudder of pleasure as it sent flutters of sensation through his body, spreading all of the way out to his fingertips and toes.

Wufei found himself wanting Quatre with a growing ache that bordered on pain. His body was shaking with the force of his desire, his cock was throbbing, and Quatre was panting right beside his ear, making him even harder if that was possible.

Heat built up in his groin as Quatre's teeth grazed his nipple while the hand which had been palming him moved to deftly remove his pants.

He closed his eyes tightly as the sensations heightened, heat tearing through his body, burning him alive, consuming him, until heat was all he could feel. Then Quatre was moving lower.

He hovered over Wufei's dripping erection, pausing to speak to Wufei, his hot breath washing over it making it leap. "I've wanted to do this for a long time now." He slowly slid his tongue out and licked at the oozing tip. His hand curled around the raging red length holding it steady as his lips closed around the head. His tongue traced the veins standing out prominently.

"Yes." He murmured in satisfaction, pulling back slightly. Then his head was being forcefully pushed down by Wufei, and he allowed himself a small smirk.

Quatre loved the feel of Wufei in his mouth. Love the feel of slick skin and heavy weight sliding to the back of his throat. Loved the way Wufei desperately pushed up into his mouth. Quatre liked being in control. He let his teeth graze gently along Wufei's length and felt the fingers in his hair tighten. Wufei was thrusting up into his mouth, and Quatre decided to let him control the pace for a bit. Wufei had been so patient with him after all, in the previous weeks of his amnesia. His free hand slid down gently to cup Wufei's balls, and Wufei let out a loud growl. Quatre knew that Wufei was close; he could feel it from the tightening of the balls in his hands and could tell from the almost frantic thrusts Wufei was making into his mouth. Shifting, he pulled his mouth from Wufei, giving the tip a swipe with his tongue before pulling away completely.

Wufei stared at him, glazed eyes not understanding. Quatre smiled. As much as he wanted Wufei's seed to flood his mouth, he didn't want this to be over yet. There would be plenty of time for that later on, but right now Quatre needed something different, and damn, but he'd been waiting too long for it!

He looked down at Wufei's cock which was still slick with his saliva and gave a little grin. Then he shifted up and hurriedly divested himself of his clothes. Positioning himself quickly, he stared into Wufei's eyes as he started to lower himself slowly. Wufei's eyes widened and strong hands clenched on Quatre's thighs, preventing him from lowering himself further.

"You need to be stretched." Wufei got out.

Quatre stared. Yes, perhaps he did. But he was desperate right now; he'd waited too long for this, and he wasn't about to wait a second more. Keeping his eyes fixed firmly on Wufei's face, he reached one hand down and began to stroke himself. Wufei's eyes drifted to the arousing sight, and consequently his grip on Quatre's thighs loosened in his moment of lustful distraction. That was the moment Quatre had been waiting for. In a quick movement, he'd impaled himself onto Wufei.

He gave a little cry of pain and froze.

Wufei glared at him as he struggled to catch his breath. "Dammit, Quatre." Wufei muttered a bit angrily, but he didn't dare move. Instead, he lay still and waited for Quatre to catch his breath and for his body to adjust. One hand reached out to gently stroke Quatre's now only half-hard length.

"You didn't have to do that." He sighed.

Quatre ignored him, trying to remember how to breathe. The pain had been intense, but now he was being distracted by the hand on his cock and the pain inside was lessening. A minute later and he was ready to move. He flashed Wufei a smile, and then he began to rise above Wufei. "If… I'd waited any longer – " he got out between pants. "I'd have…" He groaned. "Spontaneously combusted."

They both gasped suddenly, Wufei from being clenched so deliciously and Quatre from the sensation of having that length sliding against his insides.

"More." He whispered and picked up his pace. Wufei's hands on his thighs helped to lift him and tug him back hard. His hips snapped up with every downward stroke Quatre made. Wufei shifted slightly and the angle changed. Quatre froze, his eyes widening.

Then he closed his eyes and threw his head back, his throat working in wordless cries of pleasure. It was fantastic. With the new angle, every downward stroke had Wufei's cock rubbing against Quatre's prostate, setting off sparks of intense pleasure. His pace grew more frantic as he pressed himself heavily down onto Wufei, eager for more of the cries of pleasure and sounds of soft pants falling from his lips.

He dimly heard Wufei moaning and felt a hand curl around his cock. When it got to be too much, he covered Wufei's hand with his own as though that could somehow make Wufei's hand move faster, harder, and bring him to his climax. The feeling of both of their hands moving on his own erection was too much for Quatre, and with a little cry he spilled himself on Wufei's chest. Wufei removed his hand and held tightly to Quatre's waist giving two more hard thrusts before he too was following Quatre over the edge.

Quatre sank limply onto Wufei's chest, breathing ragged as his body shuddered in pleasurable aftershocks. He shifted slightly and covered Wufei's mouth with his own. They kissed slowly and for a long time, tongues twining lazily before breaking apart. Quatre stayed lying on top of Wufei, unwilling to move from the comforting circle of Wufei's arms.

Eventually their breathing evened out.

"I suppose fate has a way of working things out for the best." Wufei finally remarked a long time later when the silence had stretched out comfortably.

Quatre shook his head in a little lazy movement that had his nose brushing against Wufei's chest and Wufei's arms tightening around him. "I think that even if I hadn't lost my memory I would have found my way to you eventually, and Duo to Trowa. When you're supposed to be with someone, it'll happen regardless of how much you try to stop it."

Wufei smiled and pulled Quatre even tighter before saying teasingly, "All the same, if you get knocked out again, I'll make sure that I'm the first person you wake up to."

Quatre laughed a clear tinkling laugh. "I think I'll do the same. I won't let you use amnesia to forget me." Then he yawned and settled down to sleep.

Wufei just smiled and tugged Quatre even closer to him, burying his face into Quatre's silky blonde hair. Nothing could make me forget you. Then he too closed his eyes and within moments both were napping peacefully.

XXX

In their bedroom, Duo and Trowa sank together, sweaty and panting. "I think they've worked everything out." Trowa commented calmly.

"You think?" Duo asked innocently with a touch of wicked humour. "What made you think that? The fact that Quatre was screaming Wufei's name loud enough to wake the dead, or the fact that their bedsprings were creaking in a nice hard rhythm?"

"Both." Trowa admitted with a slight smile before tugging Duo towards him for another kiss.

XXX

In his bedroom where he was working on his laptop, Heero let his lips curl into a little smirk. Now everyone would be able to concentrate on their next mission. Hm, he looked at the message; he loved infiltration missions…

The End.


End file.
